A Day in the Life Blog

Alisa Ave. St. Margaret's, Twickenham, Middlesex

The first time the Beatles are seen in "Help!" is when their Rolls Royce pulls up in a suburban residential street, they get out and proceed to enter four adjacent terraced houses here in Ailsa Avenue (located not far from the studio) - Ringo in number 5, John 7, Paul 9, and George 11, while, across the road, two women bystanders (Dandy Nichols, later to star in the BBC sitcom Till Death Us Do Part, and Gretchen Franklin), ponder on the boys' remarkable normality and whether or not they would appreciate a wave.

What neither they nor the world could see was that, on the inside, the four houses had been knocked into one enormous communal area - although this, of course, was shot on a set at Twickenham. While in Ailsa Avenue this day the Beatles also shot some street scenes.

The group were not involved in shooting on the 15th and then they and the crew enjoyed a long Easter weekend break, re-convening a the studio on Tuesday, April 20th.

Twickenham Film Studios, St. Margaret's, Twickenham and Studio Two, EMI Studios, London

In the morning the Beatles completed shooting the "Relativity Cadenza" scene begun the previous day. They weren't required at Twickenham for the rest of the day, however, with studio and location shots involving Professor Foot, Algernon, Clang, Bhuta and their "Thugs" being filmed here and on location through the afternoon and evening. But the group remained at the film studios long enough to give a live interveiw for BBC Radio.

On this day, The Beatles recorded “Help!” -- the song -- during a four-hour session that started around 7 p.m. at Abbey Road Studio Two in London.

It was the title track of the band's fifth album and second film.

Twelve takes were recorded that night; the first eight were rhythm tracks only, with vocals appearing for the first time on take nine. John Lennon -- the song's primary writer -- sang lead vocals, backed by Paul McCartney and George Harrison.

Speaking of Harrison, he had some difficulty playing the descending electric-guitar fills when the band was recording the backing tracks.

The song came to be when someone in The Beatles' camp changed the name of the band's upcoming movie from "Eight Arms to Hold You" to "Help!" Once again, Lennon and McCartney needed to come up with an original song to match the title of a movie. (The same thing happened a year earlier with "A Hard Day's Night.")

Twickenham Film Studios, St. Margaret's, Twickenham

Shooting of the scene, supposedly set inside Buckingham Palace, in which the Beatles, running along a corridor, are triggered into slow motion by Professor Foot's "Relativity Cadenza".

Empire Pool, Wembley and Studio One, Teddington Studio Centre, Teddington

An appearance in the New Musical Express 1964-65 Annual Poll-Winners' All-Star Concert, the Beatle's third consecutive contribution to this afternoon show presented by the weekly pop paper. In front of a 10,000 audience they performed "I Feel Fine", "She's A Woman", "Baby's In Black", "Ticket To Ride" and "Long Tall Sally".

Highlights of the concert were broadcast in two 85 minute ABC Television specials titled Poll Winners Concert, the first of these, the one including the Beatles' appearance, transmitted on April 18 (Easter Sunday) 3:15-4:40 pm in most of Britain. Viewers also saw the group collect their poll awards from American Singer Tony Bennett.

Immediately after the NME performance, the Beatles left Wembley and drove to ABC'x Teddington studios, arriving at 6:30 pm. After dinner and a change of clothes, they participated in a rehearsal/camera run-through, dress rehearsal, and finally, live transmission of the weekly series The Eamonn Andrews Show.

Studio Two, Riverside Studios, London

With a new single out, another Top Of The Pops television appearance was necessary, and for the last time the group went into BBC studios and shot a mimed performance exclusively for TOTP screening. Video-taping (including rehearsals) took place from 1:30 pm and two songs were shot, the usual A- and B-side formula: "Ticket To Ride" and "Yes It Is". For the first time, the Beatles wore the fawn-colored jackets which they would wear again the next day at the NME concert and then wear for their famous Shea Stadium concert. (In August)

Both song performances were included in Top Of The Pops on Thursday, April 15th, transmitted from 7:30 to 8:00 pm. "Yes It Is" was then repeated the following week (April 22) and "Ticket To Ride" on April 29th and again on May 6th, all (7:30-8:00 pm).

Another unused scene was shot today, set in a warehouse interior with the four Beatles, Superintendent Gluck (Patrick Cargill), seven of his policemen and 12 "thugs" belonging to Clang (Leo McKern).

Four sequences were filmed, only two involving the Beatles, all four of the group took part in a washroom sequence, in which havoc was wreaked by an excessive hot-air hand-drier and then Ringo shot a solo sequence in a bathroom, not in the finished film.

Source: The Complete Beatles Chronicles - Mark Lewisohn

Today the Beatles filmed the "Pub Cellar" sequence, in which Ringo, having fallen through a trap door, is confronted by "Raja, the famous Bengal maneater".

During a break in filming today, the Beatles received a "Bell" award from Radio Caroline, presented to them by disc-jockey Simon Dee and filmed by newsreel cameras, and Dee also took the opportunity to interview the Beatles for a broadcast on the Pirate airwaves.

The first couple of days this week were spent shooting the interior dining area and kitchen sections of the "Rajahama" restaurant sequence, all on a set built at Twickenham.