"London was implicated in the collusion of a fat music industry bloated on cocaine and bereft of direction": How London lost its lustre

The Rolling Stones out for a stroll in Green Park, London.

On October 13, 1963, at 8pm, London became the centre of the known pop universe. Why? Because that is when The Beatles appeared on Sunday Night At The London Palladium. Their 12-minute performance was watched on black-and-white TVs by a record 15 million people – including a bright spark of a sub-editor on the Daily Mirror, who coined the term ‘Beatlemania’ for Monday’s edition. 

A few weeks later The Beatles gained the royal seal of approval when they headlined the televised Royal Variety Show. And London began to Swing into action.