I watched "Only Connect" tonight.  During Round One the teams have four sequential clues.  Clue 1 in one sequence was "we all stand together". Three phrases later, the connecting word turned out to be frogs.  And that initial clue was, of course, from Paul McCartney's "Frog Chorus"

 

This is the cartoon in the Daily Headlines from The Day: a news website for students (which I subscribe to for my College Library).  Gotta be in my Top Ten of Favourite Beatle references.

I walked into Hinckley's little shopping mall this morning to the sound of Ringo, singing "With a Little Help from my Friends".  

I never watch "Would I lie to you" - but I caught the last 10 minutes tonight.  Lee Mack was trying to convince the others that he had a system for remembering the teletubbies and added ... "Stuart, but he left before Ringo"! I must have missed something, because doesn't really make sense does it?

Something else I missed was in yesterday's Times (until I read it late last night in bed): was a little piece about  lego artworks:  "Lego recreations of The Beatles, One Direction and a telephone box will go on display as part of The Art of the Brick ... " (p21).

And as I type this I'm listening to "Mull of Kintyre" as Anton and Judy dance a waltz on "Strictly Come Dancing"

I'm watching the second part of "Oh you pretty thing".  Rick Wakeman's wardrobe gets a lot of attention and we're introduced to the man that created his clothes and other rock stage outfits.  He said: "I stopped listening to music in 1967 - when the Beatles went mad"

Wednesday, 24th September

The cover of T2 today showed a picture of George and Olivia Harrison with the heading: Loving George: My Life with the Beatle.  Olivia recalls a hike up Machu Picchu - "just backpackers alone up the mountain, and two pan pipe players appeared playing Hey Jude.  I sent it to Paul on my phone, he said 'Ah, you see, you can't get away'". Beatlewatch's point exactly.

"Later" with Jools Holland started on Saturday.  I caught up with it tonight and to my surprise one of his guests was Olivia Harrison promoting a new box set of George's music!

I watched episode 2 of "Cilla" tonight: much better than the first one. No sight of the Beatles this time, but lots of references in conversations between the characters (and there was a poster in Brian Epstein's Office too).  But the big one was when she recorded Lennon and McCartney's "Love of the Loved" at Abbey Road with George Martin.  Mike would have smiled with me at that point - he knew I have a soft spot for him (& his voice).

I watched "Sexy Beast" last night: a tense gangster-style film.  It ended in the early hours of today.  In the final scene of the film one of the characters tells a silly story about a futuristic product: hairstyle pills!  He says it's been trialled on monkeys - who chose Beatles haircuts and after two years they are still very happy with them. The film ends with his friends laughter.

I've just ordered Leonard Cohen's new album.  Mark Ellen recalls chats with him in yesterday's "Times 2" (p4) and writes: "Most songwriters are fearfully pragmatic, Lennon and McCartney famously agreeing times in their diaries ... to write ... But in the dusty, delightful and exquisitely romantic manner that's characterised his career, Cohen still waits humbly for the muse to visit him.

I heard Twist and Shout this morning - Chris Evans' "Big Screen Belter".  No prizes for guessing the film.

I heard on Simon Mayo's show tonight as I did a bit of painting in the kitchen When I'm 64. 

I've put my brushes down now to watch "Oh You Pretty Things: The story of Music and Fashion" (BBC4) - It starts in the 1960s so I'm fully expecting to see at least one picture of The Beatles ... 10 minutes in there was a bit about the tailor shop "Lord John": there's a cape hanging on the wall, made for John Lennon but he never collected it. 

And in a segment about the "Granny takes a trip" shop there's a shot of George Harrison wearing a floral jacket - the very one shown in this photo.

I get the "i" newspaper at work (for the students).  I don't often flick through it, but I did today.  And what did I see ... a photo with the headline "Mr McCartney sticks the boot in with a stellar frow".  In other words, the British Brand of Hunter "drew a heady mix of names for its London Fashion Week Show" - including Stella and Paul McCartney.

In 30 minutes time its the first episode of "Cilla".  I may save it for another tonight, but I'm sure it'll feature in several future posts.

This weeks TV Critic's Choice in the Saturday Review (Times, p27) is "Cilla". This is the story of "how she rose from working in a typing pool to local singing sensation to national star, helped on her way by a certain John, Paul, George and Ringo".

Saturday, 13th September

I caught two Beatles numbers on the Radio2 today: "For No One" at 16.52 pm and "Because" at 18.42 pm

I watched a documentary about Carole King tonight (BBC4). One of the talking heads remarked that her LP "Tapestry" (a favourite of mine) was a real hit when it was released - heard everywhere.  He could only compare its popularity to Sgt Pepper. I also learnt that she wrote the song Chains - which I also like very much not just because it was covered by The Beatles but because Stranded did a very good version too. 

I got ready for work to Hey Jude (Chris Evan's Monday Beatles slot is alive and well).  And was delighted with a question on BBC2's "Only Connect" as I ate my tea.  Q: What's the link between four clues, the last being Musical Subaqueous Craft.  The answer was yellow and the final clue: Yellow Submarine (ta-dah).

A bumper crop of references this weekend.  I heard John Lennon singing on Smooth Radio in Hinckley's Mind Charity shop on Saturday; Wings on R2 in my summerhouse this afternoon.



Peter Prichard

I've read Peter Prichard's obit in yesterday's Times (p76) - the show business agent and Ed Sullivan's eyes and ears in Europe who made the famous Beatles booking that led to a record 73 million Americans tuning in to see them : "The Beatles' sensational performance at Studio 50 on Broadway ... would not have happened but for the cool showbiz acumen of a largely unheralded figure back in London: the agent Peter Prichard.

The Beatles also featured in Daniel Finkelstein's Notebook (p21): "I am reminded of George Harrison's remark about writing Something  and Here Comes the Sun.  He said he hadn't seen himself as a songwriter, "but then I thought, if John and Paul can write, then everyone can write"".

And a few moments ago whilst checking to see if there are any tickets available for Wolf Hall (unsurprisingly, there are not) I saw that there's also a play on about Brain Epstein.



Best Beatle reference ever!  One of our new students is called Eleanor Rigby - and yes, she was named after the song.

Apparently today, is the day when John and Olivia married.   To celebrate, Chris Evans played Oh Sweet Lord - a song we all sung at Mike's funeral (which is just 7 days away from its 3 year "anniversary")

Monday, 1st September

"McCartney in storm of abuse after urging Scotland to stay ... McCartney, whose love song to Scotland, Mull of Kintyre, featured in the opening ceremony of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, signed a letter that made the case for the Union" (Times, p2)