Long-lost footage of The Beatles’ 1964 ‘Top Of The Pops’ performance unearthed
Long-lost footage of Liverpudlian icons The Beatles appearing on the BBC’s Top Of The Pops in 1964 has reportedly been found.
On March 19th, 1964, the quartet took to the iconic show to record performances of ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’ and ‘You Can’t Do That’, the A-side and B-side of a single released the day after recording. It quickly became their fourth UK number one.
However, the BBC did not preserve the footage, which has consequently been missing for decades. As this appearance was their very first on the show, fans have sorely missed a chance to catch a glimpse of the group making their Top Of The Pops debut.
Now, Film is Fabulous!, a charitable film preservation organisation, has reported that they were presented with a 35mm BBC film negative, which included the key episode, at the recent British Film Collectors’ Convention (BFCC) in Oxted, Surrey.
The happy coincidence began with the passing of a former industry professional, whose family then passed on the precious material to the organisation.
“Discussions will also be held with other parts of the corporation to ensure the content is made available to a wide audience,” Film Is Fabulous confirmed via Facebook.
Further describing the film, the organisation shared, “Passages of the recording show the studio, the technicians, and the make-up ladies. There were four takes of the first song, ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, with two being aborted because of technical errors. During breaks, the Beatles openly joked, and could be seen dancing to amuse themselves.”
The statement added, “The other song, ‘You Can’t Do That’, had two takes. During the second of these recordings, John Lennon pulled a funny face when the camera came in for a ‘close-up’. It’s an amusing piece of Beatle history.”
This newly unearthed material might depict The Beatles at the height of Beatlemania. Still, filmmaker Sam Mendes recently set out to capture a more fully-fledged filmic portrayal of the Fab Four.
Slated for simultaneous release in 2028, Mendes’ ambitious four biopics will include Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.
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