It was 50 years to the day that America first saw The Beatles play

Fifty years ago to the day The Beatles played the Winter Gardens in Bournemouth, the town’s newest dining experience opened its doors.

The Bournemouth Rock Café is home to a unique collection of rock and pop memorabilia associated with nearly 60 years of music history in the town. The Beatles Room is dedicated to the many connections that link the Fab Four to the resort, including the Winter Gardens shows on 16 November 1963 that were filmed by American TV news crews and resulted in the first footage of The Beatles to be shown on US television – three months before the famous Ed Sullivan Show on February 1964.

Cutting the ribbon, the Mayor of Bournemouth Cllr Dr Rodney Cooper (pictured above with Bournemouth Rock Cafe owner Dave Robinson to the left and Nick Churchill, author of Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth on the right) said: “I can’t wait to come back here time and time again, there’s so much history on show and so many fascinating stories that relate to it.”

The music-themed menu at Bournemouth Rock Café - which can be found at the Beacon Hotel on Priory Road - showcases its specialist range of quality burgers made from locally-sourced ground beef and fresh ingredients.

Copies of Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth can be ordered in time for Christmas here.
The Daily Echo in Bournemouth also reported the event here.

The Beatles & Bournemouth: a permanent exhibition

To mark the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ first shows in Bournemouth, on 19 August 1963 when they opened a six-day residency at the Gaumont (now the Odeon) cinema on Westover Road, a new exhibition celebrating their many connections to the town is to open.

The Beatles played more shows at the Gaumont than in any other UK theatre outside London, notching up no less than 16 shows between August 1963 and their final visit on 2 October 1964.

The exhibition, at the Beacon Hotel on Priory Road, Bournemouth, includes dozens of photos of The Beatles in Bournemouth, as well as posters, handbills, reviews and programmes from the group’s four visits to the town.

There are various other photos from Robert Freeman’s photo shoot of the boys at the Palace Court Hotel on Westover Road that produced the iconic half-shadow sleeve shot for their second album, With The Beatles.

Also at the Beacon Hotel you can find the main venue sign, a section of stage and some seats from the historic Winter Gardens theatre where The Beatles played on 16 November 1963 and were filmed for US television – the first footage America was to see of the Fab Four.

Much interest is bound to fall on the remarkable photo of John Lennon with his young son Julian and his Aunt Mimi at Sandbanks Ferry, just yards from the harbourside bungalow he bought for Mimi in 1965 and where he visited her many times before he left these shores for good in 1971.

The exhibition tells an incredible story of how a small resort on the south coast of England came to play a significant part in the history of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll group of them all.

In conjunction with the exhibition there is a new restaurant opening at the Beacon Hotel later this month.The Bournemouth Rock Cafe uses Harry Taylor’s iconic ‘Stick of Rock’ photo as part of its logo and will be serving gourmet burgers and a full menu in rooms that are adorned with Bournemouth music memorabilia from all eras and genres.

:: The Beatles In Bournemouth exhibition opens on Thursday, 15 August.

:: The book, Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth can be ordered here for a special price.

Beatles Days again!

The Beatles Days roadshow reconvenes at the Beacon Hotel in Bournemouth on Sunday from 10am for another voyage deep into the heart of Beatles memorabilia and story-swapping.
Last summer the estimable Steve and Gloria Holmes stopped off in Bournemouth to help launch Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth and are looking forward to their return visit. Since then they've been all over Europe and the States, picking up new Beatles collectables and a host of great stories to share.
Signed copies of Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth will be available to buy alongside all manner of Beatles-related merchandise, music and much more besides.
The Beacon Hotel (formerly The Bournebeat) is at 12 Priory Road, Bournemouth and the Beatles Days roadshow will be in the main bar until 4pm.
Copies of Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth are also available from www.beatlesandbournemouth.com.