The Beatles Films Podcast

Ed Williamson and Matt Looker
  • 4.7 (28)
  • Music
  • Updated Weekly

Two film writers and Fab Four fans discuss movies and TV about, starring, and inspired by The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 1d ago

    A Hard Day's Night (Part 1: A train)

    Come 'ead, then. We start by looking at roughly the first 16 minutes of the Beatles' 1964 film debut. Expect a detailed breakdown of their first dialogue scene in the train carriage ("Who's that little old man?"), and how it establishes straight away through absurdist techniques that these characters don't inhabit a strict reality, giving Richard Lester licence to do more or less what he wants from now on. We unpack the generational and class dynamics at play in the encounter with the train commuter ("I bet you're sorry you won!") and discuss, in frankly more detail than anyone wants, whether or not the film is a musical. A Hard Day's Night is often on BBC iPlayer, although not at the moment, and available to rent on a few streaming services. https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/a-hard-days-night There's also a good quality copy on YouTube at the moment, which might of course be taken down soon. Do yourself a favour and buy the Blu-ray anyway.Get Samira Ahmed's excellent book about the film, from the BFI Modern Classics series: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/hard-days-night-9781839029394/Guns N' Roses' November Rain video, which as explained would not exist without I Should've Known Better: https://youtu.be/8SbUC-UaAxEThe Proclaimers jukebox musical Sunshine on Leith, which is great: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/sunshine-on-leith A bit more on Theatre of the absurd: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theatre_of_the_absurd Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    A Hard Day's Night (Part 1: A train)

  2. Jul 6

    Snodgrass (with David Quantick)

    Ian Hart's third outing as John Lennon was 2013's Snodgrass, adapted by David Quantick from Ian R MacLeod's short story. Aired as part of the Sky Arts Playhouse series, it deals with a Lennon who left The Beatles in 1962 following his refusal to record How Do You Do It. With John now 50, bitter but insisting he did the right thing, it asks: where does creativity go when it has no outlet? We discuss this and its alternative timeline of a Beatles who went on to be nearly as big as The Hollies. Then we're joined by David Quantick to talk about how the project came to be and his attempts to make a feature-length version, the process of trying to capture Lennonian wit in dialogue, and his views on the Sam Mendes biopics and Paul McCartney's latest output, The Boys of Dungeon Lane. You can watch Snodgrass, albeit not in great quality, on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ek89aSrwMN0What is probably a better quality version is on Vimeo, but you need an age-verified account because it's supposedly "mature content": https://vimeo.com/240214664David's website, including links to buy his books, is at https://davidquantick.comMartin Carr's solo work is released under his own name: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3b02YDnufwl9CPIblMomrD and under the name bravecaptain: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4IpVpd0lNWwyReKr5MkloYBeatles Forever by ELO (we apologise in advance): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4g3JgwYFio David's mention of a film called The Ballad of John and Yoko starring "a McGann" is a reference to John and Yoko: A Love Story, which is on our list. Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Snodgrass (with David Quantick)

  3. Jun 29

    Raga

    In Apple Films' 1971 documentary, Ravi Shankar is pondering whether he's diluted his beloved Indian classical music by promoting it to the West, through his association with George Harrison and The Beatles. We look at how the film explores this, and how it emphasises the spiritual connection necessary to perform the music, through techniques like focusing on the musicians' eye contact while playing. Plus! Was George actually rubbish at the sitar? Watch the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvwf53_ZPEM The final scene of Mad Men, in a very similar setting to the Esalen Institute, where Ravi and George practise sitar in Raga: https://youtu.be/LKPI56zW5AA Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Raga

  4. Jun 22

    200 Motels

    We're in agreement: this is the worst film we've covered. Yes, worse than Sextette. Ringo Starr's role in Frank Zappa's 1971 freakout film seems like it could've gone to anyone: is there a specific reason for using him as a Zappa avatar in this film? We also talk Zappa and free speech: do the arguably puerile lyrics undermine the virtuoso musicianship of Zappa and the Mothers of Invention? And did John Lennon and Yoko Ono rip off a Zappa song after they played together? A WARNING: there is more effing and jeffing in this episode than usual, because of the necessity to quote some of the dialogue to discuss it. Watch 200 Motels: https://m.ok.ru/video/1559126346278The documentary The True Story of 200 Motels: https://youtu.be/hHupp3ZDKAkThéâtre du Grand-Guignol: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_GuignolCirque de Clunes on Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge: https://youtu.be/hPQHHP7dfjUBenson Boone: https://youtube.com/@bensonbooneThe Darkness: https://youtube.com/@theactualdarknessJamrag/King Kong, as of 2025's Power to the People box set, now credits Zappa as a writer: https://youtu.be/4BDPdquOpnkRingo's quote about his waning commitment to filmmaking is from Alan Clayson's book Ringo Starr: https://share.google/mEjJ4ljorGZFTVQmi Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    200 Motels

  5. Jun 15

    Evolver 62

    This film is of Mark Lewisohn's 2022 stage show bringing to life what the Beatles did in 1962, enhanced by on-location filming by director Chris Purcell. We talk about how it showcases a performance style and an enthusiasm that belies a reputation for dry historical detail. And quite a bit about Ringo Starr's drumming, as it turns out. You can rent Evolver 62 on Prime Video and Apple TV at the moment: https://www.justwatch.com/uk/movie/evolver-62And buy it on blu-ray in some territories: https://www.wowhd.co.uk/evolver-62/824355814323The Bill Hicks bit with the Ringo joke in it: https://youtu.be/-jIuP_Uk7AkThe Red Dwarf episode with the Ringo joke is series 2, episode 6, "Parallel Universe": https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00b8qy6/red-dwarf-ii-6-parallel-universe. See also series 1, episode 2, "Future Echoes" in which we find out Lister's robot goldfish are called Lennon and McCartney.The Ringo interview it turns out we were both thinking of was actually with Dave Stewart, not Elvis Costello: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vl9188EPdLITrailer for Bart Layton's The Imposter, which repopularised reconstructions in documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1kHod0xa_8Actor Peter Boyle, at whose wedding John Lennon was best man: https://share.google/7TH4WLlIiuMSOvzW1Ed's point towards the end about how the surfeit of biography online affects fandom is paraphrased from Monsters: What Do We Do with Great Art by Bad People? by Claire Dederer: https://share.google/pXQbXdAMaKS5qEJdf Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Evolver 62

  6. Jun 8

    Imagine (1972)

    1972's Imagine was part-longform music video for John Lennon's Imagine and Yoko Ono's Fly albums, and part-bonkers conceptual art film. We try and get to the bottom of it: does it mean anything, and does a work of art's meaning have to be intentional in order to be, well, meaningful? Plus some key themes: mass isolation, intimacy in celebrity, male femininity through submission: sure, why not?  You can watch the 2018 remaster on Prime Video at the moment.The trailer for the 2018 cinema release: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThIhgBloqN0The chess scene, set to Yoko's Don't Count the Waves: https://youtu.be/nVRhtWfJqXQThe video for the song Imagine: https://youtu.be/YkgkThdzX-8OK, so we weren't 100% correct about Situationism, but give us a break: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Situationist_International The chess scene in Bottom: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0f64qJorLrYThe Marina Abramović work similar to Yoko's Cut Piece is Rhythm 0, in which she stood for six hours and invited the audience to use 72 objects to do whatever they wanted to her: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhythm_0 Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Imagine (1972)

  7. Jun 1

    George Harrison and Ringo Starr interview on Aspel and Company, 1988

    We love an iconic Beatle interview, and here's one: the first time two Beatles had been interviewed together on TV since the band split up. It's fascinating for a few reasons. We talk about Ringo's alcoholism (he went into rehab later that year), and how George gently prevents his drunk friend from going too far. Plus some discussion of the When We Was Fab video, which George was there to promote. Was Paul McCartney in the walrus costume? And did Michael Aspel found the Traveling Wilburys? Watch the interview: https://youtu.be/-vrRfORrcYMThelma Barlow, the Coronation Street actor also interviewed in the episode: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelma_Barlow Terry Wogan interviewing English footballer Paul "Gazza" Gascoigne in 1990: "The dream could turn out to be a nightmare" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcGvSKRQ5KYGeorge's When We Was Fab video: https://youtu.be/AVu6nPTVbBQOliver Reed drunk on Aspel and Company: https://youtu.be/EZMXIxIQmPw Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    George Harrison and Ringo Starr interview on Aspel and Company, 1988

  8. May 25

    Beatles (2014 Norwegian film)

    Based on Lars Saabye Christensen's 1984 book, a huge success in Norway, it's another coming-of-age story! Why does teenage Beatles fandom dovetail so well with this genre? We look at the use of the music in the film, which secured the rights to use a few Beatles songs, as well as how successfully it marries up the four teenage boy characters with their respective Beatles. You can rent the film cheaply on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlOJYlREuIEThe book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatles_(novel)Watch The Bonfire of the Vanities: https://share.google/2KvlWLlYJaRyxTi1DMario Puzo's The Godfather novel: https://share.google/25bfmbahtQ6IksLbAThe Norwegian Wood film: https://share.google/olHb9tcPqN3cYKKtQ Meet the Beatles Films Podcast The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media. But tomorrow may rain, so you'll follow us on: Instagram https://instagram.com/beatlesfilmspodBluesky https://bsky.app/profile/beatlesfilmspod.bsky.socialYouTube https://www.youtube.com/@BeatlesFilmsPodcastThreads https://www.threads.net/@beatlesfilmspodFacebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/304654901827622 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Beatles (2014 Norwegian film)
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About

Two film writers and Fab Four fans discuss movies and TV about, starring, and inspired by The Beatles: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Ed Williamson and Matt Looker
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    106
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Ed Williamson and Matt Looker
  • Show Website
    The Beatles Films Podcast

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