You probably didn’t realise that today (June 25) is Global Beatles Day, did you?
That’s because the idea has been a grassroots-led initiative, led by one superfan Faith Cohen. Now her wheeze has been officially recognised by Apple Corps Ltd, and that body, which looks after The Beatles’ legacy, is honouring it today
Cohen originally picked June 25 because it was the day in 1967 that the group participated in Our World, the first ever multinational satellite broadcast and up to that point the largest TV audience for any one event (over 400 million people tuned in). It was on there that The Beatles premiered All You Need Is Love, the nearest the so-called Summer Of Love had to an anthem and arguably the peak moment in terms of the group’s global reach and influence.
Unfortunately, because it was 1967 the original broadcast was in black and white and we’ve all doubtless seen the grainy clips from it at various times – John Lennon chewing gum whilst clutching his headphones, Mick Jagger clapping out of time and the fusty-looking middle-aged members of the orchestra in their evening dress, looking like they’d been beamed in from 1912.
But today Apple has posted a colourised version of the Our World performance (above). Other than on the Beatles Anthology series from the 1990s this will be the first time it’s been seen – for free, anyway. According to Apple, it will “celebrate the iconic performance’s anniversary, mark Global Beatles Day, and give fans around the world the chance to relive that spectacular, global moment from 1967 and share their reaction in the live chat.”
Tom Greene, Apple’s current CEO has put out a statement, praising Cohen’s initiative: “More than ever, the message of The Beatles, and of All You Need Is Love speaks to something vital for community, connection, and the power of bringing people together. That is what makes Global Beatles Day so special. It asks nothing more than for people, wherever they are, to stop, listen, and share a little joy.”
What else was on Our World? Well other participants included the film director Franco Zeffirelli, who opened his rehearsals for the film Romeo And Juliet to the global TV audience and Leonard Bernstein, who could be seen rehearsing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto Number 3 with pianist Val Cliburn. There are also rather less riveting segments that showed workers building a section of the Tokyo subway system and section from Australia about trams in Melbourne. So now you know.
If you want to know more about Global Beatles Day head over to its website at globalbeatlesday.com
