You might have assumed that all of the footage ever shot of The Beatles had already seen the light of day or been broadcast. Not so, it turns out – the new footage is a shot on 8mm, during the filming of the movie Help! an hour and three and a bit minutes never released and indeed never known of until now.
Thomas Emmet Mullins is a Dublin-based illustrator, designer and advertising specialist, for the past twenty years, Mullins has had an eBay alert set for "Beatles 8mm.”
"Years ago,” he explains, "when I was shooting 8mm of my own, I thought it would be interesting to see if there was any fan footage or the likes for sale on eBay. There was nothing, and so I set an alert on the site to remind me if some ever came up. Then I completely forgot about it.”
When that alert went off for the first time, Mullins clicked over to see what was there.
"There were some stills of the footage on the listing,” Thomas adds, "and it was clear it was unseen footage of what is arguably the most documented band in modern history. I could tell by the slight difference in exposure rates from scene to scene that this wasn’t a graded, commercially produced reel and that it was taken by a crew member or friend with access to the set of their movie Help!"
Help! is The Beatles' 1965 follow-up to the tremendously popular A Hard Day's Night (1964). Both movies were directed by Richard Lester.
The silent footage Mullins now owns was shot on Salisbury Plain, by someone unknown, in early May 1965. While staying at the Antrobus Arms in Amesbury for a few days, The Beatles were ferried daily to Knighton Down, near the Larkhill army base. This five-minute reel captures not only some performance takes, but — most interestingly and importantly — their easy interpersonal relationships, their irreverent humour. You’re looking at the world’s most famous band goofing about amidst the production of a huge hit film.
As they begin a scene dressed in uniforms and hats, their instruments ready, they mug for the cameraman. Ringo points at the sky, and John playfully holds him off at arm's length, laughing. Then John conducts behind Ringo's drums, while Paul is seriously asking someone off-camera questions, and George strums his guitar.
Other cast members mill about with rifles, while the Beatles hold their guitars like guns. John fusses with his hair under the hat, laughing. He seems to be having the most fun. All the men wait so patiently under anglepoise boom mics, while the official filming is clearly between takes. Finally, you can see George takes the lead on 'I Need You'.
Mal Evans roams about. George Martin, lean and elegant, appears in the background. It was cold weather while the filming occurred; contemporary fan reports, from those who gathered to watch their heroes from a distance, complain about the chill winds.
Paul, frowning, sits in a wooden frame and rubs his hands together, then blows on his fingers. Lester, behind a camera, is windblown. Fans crowd around. Paul chews gum. John, cigarette in hand, whistles.
The auction ends on 22 February via RR Auction.
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