London

Beatles in London

TREMBLING with excitement an ecstatic fan rushed at John Lennon clutching a piece of mistletoe. “I can’t eat that!” gagged John as the girl tried to kiss him, holding the mistletoe over his head. He smiled and firmly shook her hand; you couldn’t tell from his cheerful attitude that he had already had the tiring task of shaking hands with over 2,000 fans and that he still had 1,000 more admirers to meet, a 1.30 to 4 pm task.

John and the other three Beatles were sitting behind the bar at Wimbledon Palais recently at their Southern area fan club “get together.” One by one the 3,000 lucky fans filed past the bar, shaking hands and talking to their idols.

Those lucky enough to meet the Beatles at the beginning of the afternoon, were able to get their autographs, but after an hour it was clear the queue would take too long and reluctantly the Beatles stopped.

Beside the bar, on the Palais dance floor a huge snake of fans patiently queued. Over a hundred policemen mingled with the crowd, but their services were not needed until the Beatles went on to the barricaded stage at 4 o’clock to give an explosive thirty minute act. Several minutes went by before they could start singing as the screaming roar from 3,000 admirers filled the high-roofed dance hall.

Chocolates, shoes, boiled sweets, photos cascaded over the barrier down to the stage, where eventually the Beatles began their act. Ringo’s pounding drumming could only be heard as a dull thud through the noise of the fans and most of the singing inaudible. GRAEME ANDREWS

From New Musical Express – January 3, 1964