BC the Beatles

We’re back from our summer break and are so excited to welcome author Madeline Bocaro.

Madeline is a music journalist with a lifelong admiration for Yoko Ono. Her new book, In Your Mind - The Infinite Universe of Yoko Ono, tells the story of her amazing life, struggles, art, activism, films and music in astounding detail. The book dives deep into Yoko’s life before, during, and after her relationship with John, highlighting her chi...

We’re still on our summer break, so we’re bringing you a preview of our recent appearance on one of our favorite podcasts, Ranking the Beatles. This episode keeps the Let it Be vibes going and discusses "One after 909," ranked #85 on Ranking the Beatles' list.

Listen to the full episode and subscribe to Ranking the Beatles here.

About Ranking the Beatles: Musician and self-described Beatles fanatic Jonathan Pretus ranked the entire...

The month of August has historically been full of significant changes for the Beatles. In August 1962, Pete Best was fired, and Ringo joined the band, completing the lineup and creating the chemistry that propelled them to worldwide stardom. August 1966 brought the backlash against John’s “more popular than Jesus” comments and marked the end of their touring career. And the death of Brian Epstein, in August 1967, was a tragic loss ...

It's part two of our Mind Games extravaganza, and we're going track-by-track on the new Mind Games Ultimate mix. Listen along with us as we dive into each song on this fabulous new release. 

And don't forget, enter our giveaway to win your own copy of Mind Games!

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• Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter/X for photos, videos, and more from this episode & past episodes — we’re @bcthebeatles ...

We're going deep with a two-parter celebrating the new release of John Lennon's solo album, Mind Games.

In part one, we discuss the original album, the musicians who made up the "Plastic U.F.Ono Band," and the expansive offerings in this new set. And Erika tells Allison about the Mind Games Dolby Atmos listening event in New York City this month, which included a 50-year reunion of the entire Plastic U.F.Ono Band!

Plus, enter our g...

The trailer for 'Midas Man' — the new film about Beatles' manager Brian Epstein — dropped this week, and we couldn't be more excited!

Scheduled for release on August 29, 'Midas Man' follows Brian's career from 1963 through his death in 1967. It delves deep into Brian's family life, the Liverpool music scene, and his struggles as a closeted gay man in a world where homosexuality was still considered a felony.

After noticing how Bria...

We celebrate Ringo's birthday by diving into the solo album that was almost a Beatles reunion: 1973's Ringo. With contributions from John, George, and Paul, Ringo gave fans hope that, although their breakup was acrimonious, the four Beatles might find a way back together. For Ringo, the album, his third, was a triumph after a shaky start to his solo career and produced some of his most beloved tracks thanks to his collaborations wi...

On July 3, 1966, the Beatles landed in Manila, The Philippines, for the final stop on the first leg of their world tour. But two days later, after a misunderstanding with the country's first family, the band and their entourage narrowly escaped with their lives. 

The third part of our touring years series dives into this harrowing moment — an event that would kick off a summer of strife, and reinforce the Beatles' determination to ...

This week, we’re re-releasing a double header of episodes (two-in-one!) that digs into pivotal moments from the Beatles' touring career. The first part is about their very first tour backing Johnny Gentle in 1960. Part two discusses the band’s Winter 1963 tour, opening for UK singing sensation Helen Shapiro — a tour that intersected directly with the rapid rise of British Beatlemania. 

These two episodes are the first two parts of ...

Today is Juneteenth, a day that has held significance for the Black community for many years and one that, for the past four, has become a national holiday in the United States. It’s a day for education, listening, learning, and increasing awareness of the Black experience. Though we are two white women who are still doing a lot of learning and listening ourselves, we wanted to celebrate Juneteenth by exploring the Beatles’ connect...

Paul McCartney and Wings’ One Hand Clapping is one of the most bootlegged albums in rock history. Fifty years later, the album is being officially released for the first time, with a fabulous new mix by Steve Orchard (and Giles Martin collaborating on the Atmos version).

We’re joined by Sam Whiles, host of the Paul or Nothing podcast and the Macca in your Attic YouTube series. Join us as we nerd out over one of the most interesting...

Our guest today is the wonderful May Pang, who we’re so excited to welcome onto BC the Beatles! May began her career in the music industry at ABKCO and Apple Records before transitioning into being John and Yoko’s personal assistant. Three years later, Yoko came to her with a strange request: to be John’s lover and companion during a period of their separation. This became his “Lost Weekend” in 1974-1975, in which he and May split ...

This month, two behemoths of British culture crashed into one another, when the new season of Doctor Who featured a much-anticipated Beatles episode called “The Devil’s Chord.” Both fandoms have been hoping for this crossover episode for years, and we finally got it, complete with an incredible new villain played by Jinkx Monsoon.

Erika is joined by James Ryan and Ed Chen, who both have one foot solidly planted in both of these fan...

Our very, very special guest today is the great Kevin Harrington, who most Beatles fans will recognize as the “redhead on the roof” in the Let It Be and Get Back films. At the time, Kevin was only 18 years old(!) but had been working for the Beatles, in some capacity, for years, first as an errand boy at NEMS and then as an assistant to Brian Epstein. He worked alongside Mal Evans as the Beatles’ “roadie,” as he’s billed in the Let...

This week, Erika participated in a roundtable discussion of the newly-released Let it Be film with some of our favorite Beatles podcasters. Enjoy this supersized episode about all things Let it Be. And if you like what you hear, please head on over to our the other participants’ podcasts:

• Blotto Beatles, hosted by Becker, RB, Scotty C., and Tommy
• Ranking the Beatles, hos...

We’re thrilled to welcome the incredible Michael Lindsay-Hogg to the podcast. Michael is, of course, the director of the Beatles’ film “Let it Be,” now fully restored and available worldwide on Disney Plus.

Michael joined us to talk about his original vision for "Let it Be," its relationship to "Get Back," and give us the details on how he originally wanted the film to end. And of course we couldn’t resist asking him about one our ...

The trailer for the restored version of Michael Lindsay-Hogg's "Let it Be" film dropped this week, and we couldn't be more excited! So in anticipation of the big day, we combined two of our favorite "Let it Be" episodes from the archives.

1. Giles Martin on Remixing a #NextGen "Let it Be" — our first interview with Giles from 2021, where he tells us about everything from making the Beatles sound “fresh” for a new generation to dea...

This week, we welcome Melissa Brumm, Co-Producer and Creative Director for the Abbey Road on the River music festival.

Abbey Road on the River (AROTR) is the world’s largest Beatles-inspired music festival (and is very close to Allison's heart!). Since 2002, AROTR has celebrated the best in Beatles music, hosting Beatles and other classic rock tribute bands, as well as many of the original bands themselves.

Now taking place in Jef...

In an April 1973 press conference, John Lennon and Yoko Ono declared the birth of Nutopia, a "conceptual country" founded in response to John's ongoing immigration struggles. In past weeks, Nutopia has resurfaced online through a new website.

We look at the history of Nutopia's founding, born out of John's wild journey to U.S. citizenship. And we explore the newest incarnation of Nutopia as an online presence, just in time for the ...