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00:00:08,608 --> 00:00:13,545
[Beatles
Christmas recording, 1963]
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00:00:13,547 --> 00:00:19,118
?[Christmas song]
3
00:00:20,487 --> 00:00:23,355
Hello, this is John
speaking with his voice.
4
00:00:23,357 --> 00:00:25,724
We're all very happy
to be able to talk to you
5
00:00:25,726 --> 00:00:27,926
like this on this
little bit of plastic.
6
00:00:27,928 --> 00:00:30,229
This record reaches you at the end of
a really dear year for us,
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00:00:30,231 --> 00:00:32,097
and it's all due to you.
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00:00:32,099 --> 00:00:34,233
I'd like to say thank you to all
of the Beatle people
9
00:00:34,235 --> 00:00:36,101
who have written to
me during the year.
10
00:00:36,103 --> 00:00:37,936
I'd love to reply personally
to everyone,
11
00:00:37,938 --> 00:00:39,772
but I just
haven't enough pens.
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00:00:39,774 --> 00:00:41,607
This is Paul here.
13
00:00:41,609 --> 00:00:44,410
We're all dead pleased by the way
you've treated us in 1963,
14
00:00:44,412 --> 00:00:46,612
and we're trying to do
everything we can to please you
15
00:00:46,614 --> 00:00:49,281
with the type of songs we write
and record next year.
16
00:00:49,283 --> 00:00:50,716
Well,
I'm running out of my time
17
00:00:50,718 --> 00:00:52,317
and people are
telling me to stop--
18
00:00:52,319 --> 00:00:54,586
[all] Stop! Stop! Stop!
Stop shouting those animals!
19
00:00:54,588 --> 00:00:56,555
So I'll finish now
with wishing everyone
20
00:00:56,557 --> 00:00:58,457
Happy Crimble,
and a merry new year.
21
00:00:58,459 --> 00:00:59,525
Ya Ringo!
22
00:00:59,527 --> 00:01:01,026
Hello, Ringo here.
As you know,
23
00:01:01,028 --> 00:01:02,494
I was the last member
to join The Beatles.
24
00:01:02,496 --> 00:01:06,065
I started to play
gongs in the group 1962.
25
00:01:06,067 --> 00:01:12,538
?[singing]
26
00:01:13,673 --> 00:01:18,377
Thank you Ringo, thank you Ringo.
We'll phone you.
27
00:01:18,379 --> 00:01:27,286
?[George Harrison singing]
28
00:01:28,555 --> 00:01:30,589
[laughter]
I'm George Harrison!
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00:01:30,591 --> 00:01:32,424
Nobody else has
said anything yet
30
00:01:32,426 --> 00:01:34,359
about our secretary,
Freda Kelly in Liverpool.
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00:01:34,361 --> 00:01:36,128
Good old Freda!
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00:01:36,130 --> 00:01:37,963
So on behalf of us all,
I'd just like
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00:01:37,965 --> 00:01:39,765
to say a great
big "thank you"--
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00:01:39,767 --> 00:01:44,436
?[singing together]
35
00:01:44,438 --> 00:01:46,939
[Freda] I was just
a secretary then,
36
00:01:46,941 --> 00:01:49,808
and, funny enough,
I'm still a secretary now,
37
00:01:49,810 --> 00:01:53,312
and who would want
to hear the secretary's story?
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00:01:53,314 --> 00:01:58,750
?[music]
39
00:02:02,789 --> 00:02:04,389
[Freda] Millions
of girls around
40
00:02:04,391 --> 00:02:05,958
the world wanted
this dream job:
41
00:02:05,960 --> 00:02:07,626
they wanted to
be the secretary.
42
00:02:07,628 --> 00:02:11,230
She epitomized all their dreams
and all their hopes,
43
00:02:11,232 --> 00:02:13,832
and all these girls wanted
to be Freda Kelly
44
00:02:13,834 --> 00:02:15,901
and to be that
close to The Beatles.
45
00:02:15,903 --> 00:02:18,237
Well, I didn't expect to talk,
maybe grab one of them,
46
00:02:18,239 --> 00:02:20,172
but I wouldn't hurt 'em,
I wouldn't hurt 'em,
47
00:02:20,174 --> 00:02:22,374
I'd just talk to them maybe,
but I wouldn't, you know, grab--
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00:02:22,376 --> 00:02:23,509
like,
everybody says they're gonna
49
00:02:23,511 --> 00:02:24,543
cut their hair
and everything--
50
00:02:24,545 --> 00:02:26,211
we wouldn't do that.
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00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:29,982
[Bill Kinsley] If you look
at what is history now,
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00:02:29,984 --> 00:02:32,751
The Beatles were
together ten years.
53
00:02:32,753 --> 00:02:36,421
Freda worked for
The Beatles for eleven.
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00:02:36,423 --> 00:02:38,524
She was there right
before they made it,
55
00:02:38,526 --> 00:02:40,225
and right after they finished,
56
00:02:40,227 --> 00:02:42,161
so that says it all,
basically.
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00:02:43,696 --> 00:02:45,197
Tell me, when you hear
a Beatles record,
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00:02:45,199 --> 00:02:46,899
what thoughts run
through your mind?
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00:02:46,901 --> 00:02:49,401
Beauty, sheer beauty.
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00:02:49,403 --> 00:02:52,004
The Beatles bring
joy into the world:
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00:02:52,006 --> 00:02:55,941
they're happiness; we forget our cares
when we hear Beatle records.
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00:02:58,478 --> 00:03:01,947
[old man] Freda was far more than
a secretary to the Beatles;
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00:03:01,949 --> 00:03:04,683
she was a family member.
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00:03:04,685 --> 00:03:07,286
She's never had
the same recognition
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00:03:07,288 --> 00:03:12,157
that a number of people
within the inner circle have had,
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00:03:12,159 --> 00:03:14,626
simply because she
never pushed herself,
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00:03:14,628 --> 00:03:19,464
she never wrote a book,
she never agreed to do interviews,
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00:03:19,466 --> 00:03:25,237
she's always kept a very very
confidential existence.
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00:03:25,239 --> 00:03:26,939
[fan girl] We came
here at 6 o'clock
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00:03:26,941 --> 00:03:28,574
in the morning,
5:30, to see them,
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00:03:28,576 --> 00:03:30,776
and all they do is push you
farther and farther away
72
00:03:30,778 --> 00:03:33,378
and then they don't even
let you see them!
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00:03:33,380 --> 00:03:36,048
A lot of people didn't take
these girls seriously,
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00:03:36,050 --> 00:03:38,350
but I did, because, you know,
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00:03:38,352 --> 00:03:40,385
I was one of them --
I was a fan me self.
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00:03:40,387 --> 00:03:42,354
So I knew where
they were coming from.
77
00:03:42,356 --> 00:03:43,822
We grew up with them.
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00:03:43,824 --> 00:03:45,591
You know, they started
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00:03:45,593 --> 00:03:47,693
when they were younger
and we were younger.
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00:03:47,695 --> 00:03:49,795
And all through
these years, we've just
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00:03:49,797 --> 00:03:51,997
developed with them
and grown up with them,
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00:03:51,999 --> 00:03:54,700
and they belong
to us, you know?
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00:03:54,702 --> 00:03:56,568
But there could
never be another Beatles.
84
00:03:56,570 --> 00:03:57,669
Never.
85
00:04:00,840 --> 00:04:03,642
[old woman] She's one
of the last survivors
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00:04:03,644 --> 00:04:06,411
of the whole Beatles era,
and you know,
87
00:04:06,413 --> 00:04:09,448
this story of Freda Kelly's
will be, surely,
88
00:04:09,450 --> 00:04:12,417
one of the last true stories
of the Beatles
89
00:04:12,419 --> 00:04:14,653
that you'll ever really hear.
90
00:04:16,122 --> 00:04:18,957
[Freda] I've been a secretary
for half a century,
91
00:04:18,959 --> 00:04:21,059
fifty years,
and that's quite frightening.
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00:04:21,061 --> 00:04:25,063
This job is interesting,
but it's not as exciting as my last job.
93
00:04:25,065 --> 00:04:28,100
I don't get the phone calls
that I did in the 60's,
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00:04:28,102 --> 00:04:30,335
like, you know,
an invite to a premiere,
95
00:04:30,337 --> 00:04:32,437
you know, "Roy Orbison's
having a party
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00:04:32,439 --> 00:04:34,539
and we've managed
to get a few tickets,
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00:04:34,541 --> 00:04:36,375
do you want to
come to that Fre?"
98
00:04:36,377 --> 00:04:38,577
And I'm like "Yeah, okay,
I'm on the next train!"
99
00:04:39,746 --> 00:04:43,882
[Good Ol' Freda]
100
00:04:49,455 --> 00:04:54,126
?[xylophone music]
101
00:04:56,963 --> 00:04:59,364
I left school
when I was sixteen,
102
00:04:59,366 --> 00:05:01,967
and my first job was
at a firm called Prince's.
103
00:05:01,969 --> 00:05:03,902
I was in
the middle of a typing pool,
104
00:05:03,904 --> 00:05:06,371
which is rows of secretaries
just typing away.
105
00:05:06,373 --> 00:05:08,273
The lads from
different levels of law
106
00:05:08,275 --> 00:05:10,175
would come down
and give me work to do,
107
00:05:10,177 --> 00:05:12,244
but most of my day was just
spent typing contracts,
108
00:05:12,246 --> 00:05:14,546
typing letters --
it wasn't the most glamorous of jobs,
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00:05:14,548 --> 00:05:16,848
but I was a working woman now.
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00:05:18,785 --> 00:05:22,321
?[indie rock music]
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00:05:22,323 --> 00:05:24,623
[Freda] One day,
two guys from upstairs
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00:05:24,625 --> 00:05:26,892
came down and
came over to my desk
113
00:05:26,894 --> 00:05:29,161
and just said "Come on Freda,
we're going to take you out for lunch."
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I didn't know where I was going,
and I ended up in The Cavern.
115
00:05:36,769 --> 00:05:38,637
Now, I'd never been
to The Cavern before,
116
00:05:38,639 --> 00:05:42,841
I didn't even know what I was going into,
because it was a cellar.
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00:05:44,477 --> 00:05:46,545
It had a unique smell:
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00:05:46,547 --> 00:05:51,183
there was no ventilation,
and sometimes the toilets overflowed,
119
00:05:51,185 --> 00:05:53,652
and it was
opposite a fruit market,
120
00:05:53,654 --> 00:05:55,787
so it was probably a mixture
121
00:05:55,789 --> 00:05:59,791
of disinfectant,
rotten fruit, and sweat
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00:05:59,793 --> 00:06:02,928
all rolled into one.
123
00:06:04,497 --> 00:06:07,199
There was three archways,
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00:06:07,201 --> 00:06:10,435
and in the middle archway
was wooden seats,
125
00:06:10,437 --> 00:06:12,938
all different
types of wooden seats,
126
00:06:12,940 --> 00:06:15,407
they weren't all in rows
and all the same.
127
00:06:15,409 --> 00:06:17,909
There was a little
wooden stage at the back,
128
00:06:17,911 --> 00:06:22,481
and The Beatles were playing on the stage
when I first walked in.
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00:06:27,153 --> 00:06:29,654
And I'd never experienced
anything like that --
130
00:06:29,656 --> 00:06:31,390
it was everything about them,
131
00:06:31,392 --> 00:06:34,693
it was just the way they dressed,
with all this leather gear,
132
00:06:34,695 --> 00:06:36,795
they were larking about,
and dancing on stage,
133
00:06:36,797 --> 00:06:38,697
and mucking about
with the audience,
134
00:06:38,699 --> 00:06:41,600
and on top of everything else,
there was the music.
135
00:06:41,602 --> 00:06:45,270
It was just unlike anything
I'd ever heard.
136
00:06:45,272 --> 00:06:46,605
I was hooked.
137
00:06:46,607 --> 00:06:48,974
I just was amazed
by everything I saw,
138
00:06:48,976 --> 00:06:51,510
and I thought "That's it,
I'm going to go tomorrow."
139
00:06:55,448 --> 00:06:58,016
Well I think
it's put down that
140
00:06:58,018 --> 00:07:04,956
they played something silly
like 294 times.
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00:07:04,958 --> 00:07:10,595
Out of that, I would say,
I probably saw them about 190 times.
142
00:07:11,831 --> 00:07:18,170
?[rock music]
143
00:07:25,044 --> 00:07:27,913
[Bill Kinsley] Freda was definitely
a staple of The Cavern,
144
00:07:27,915 --> 00:07:29,948
she was always there,
145
00:07:29,950 --> 00:07:32,184
and she always
sat in the same seat.
146
00:07:33,653 --> 00:07:36,488
[Freda] I used to like the second arch
on the left hand side,
147
00:07:36,490 --> 00:07:38,657
because it was
just that handy.
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00:07:38,659 --> 00:07:42,461
You could pop in and out the
band room all the time.
149
00:07:42,463 --> 00:07:45,130
There was about two
rows in the front,
150
00:07:45,132 --> 00:07:47,032
they would leave
their rollers in
151
00:07:47,034 --> 00:07:49,100
until before
the lads would come onstage,
152
00:07:49,102 --> 00:07:50,735
and then they'd
take their rollers out
153
00:07:50,737 --> 00:07:52,871
and doll
theirselves up and everything.
154
00:08:02,482 --> 00:08:05,150
It was conversation all the time
with the audience.
155
00:08:05,152 --> 00:08:11,156
Somebody came in, a different hairstyle,
they'd pick on them.
156
00:08:11,158 --> 00:08:14,326
They'd go "Have you been
the hairdresser's?"
157
00:08:14,328 --> 00:08:17,562
or "Who got you up this morning?"
[laughter]
158
00:08:17,564 --> 00:08:19,364
But he answered them back.
159
00:08:19,366 --> 00:08:24,135
They liked the razzmatazz
between you and them.
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00:08:25,338 --> 00:08:27,873
People used to
write down a number,
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00:08:27,875 --> 00:08:30,709
give it to them, and ask them
would they right play that number.
162
00:08:30,711 --> 00:08:34,145
Now, if you gave it to John,
Paul always went over to John
163
00:08:34,147 --> 00:08:37,182
and leaned over his shoulder
and read the request out.
164
00:08:37,184 --> 00:08:39,518
I thought "Can
John read, or--?"
165
00:08:39,520 --> 00:08:41,052
He looked pretty arrogant,
to be honest--
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00:08:41,054 --> 00:08:42,554
he'd look at
the crowd like that
167
00:08:42,556 --> 00:08:44,589
as if he was going to kill
everyone in the crowd.
168
00:08:44,591 --> 00:08:46,324
And then I
mentioned it to somebody
169
00:08:46,326 --> 00:08:48,393
and they said "Oh, no, no,
John's as blind as a bat.
170
00:08:48,395 --> 00:08:50,629
He wears glasses and he
never wears his glasses,
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00:08:50,631 --> 00:08:52,597
so he can't see further
than his nose."
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00:08:53,866 --> 00:08:58,069
I liked George singing Three Cool Cats,
I loved that one.
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00:08:58,071 --> 00:09:00,572
Or The Sheik of Araby, because
he used to do a little dance
174
00:09:00,574 --> 00:09:02,541
and I liked him
doing the little dance.
175
00:09:02,543 --> 00:09:05,911
He used to sort of kick his feet
along the stage.
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00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:09,180
[laughter]
177
00:09:25,598 --> 00:09:27,566
A few times I rang Paul up,
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00:09:27,568 --> 00:09:29,868
because one of my
friends fancied him
179
00:09:29,870 --> 00:09:32,337
and I wanted him
to sing for her.
180
00:09:35,808 --> 00:09:37,509
We used to just dial Garston
181
00:09:37,511 --> 00:09:40,045
and then the number 6922.
182
00:09:40,047 --> 00:09:44,149
He'd say "Hello," and you'd go,
"Oh hi Paul, it's Freda.
183
00:09:44,151 --> 00:09:46,551
It's Linda Shepherd's birthday
on such-and-such a day,
184
00:09:46,553 --> 00:09:48,820
can you play Love of
the Loved for her?"
185
00:09:48,822 --> 00:09:50,121
"Yeah, okay."
186
00:10:01,500 --> 00:10:04,569
I got to know them personally
through just talking to them,
187
00:10:04,571 --> 00:10:07,172
going in the band room,
because when they came off-stage,
188
00:10:07,174 --> 00:10:08,940
they used to either
sit in the band room,
189
00:10:08,942 --> 00:10:11,676
talking to different people
who ever came in,
190
00:10:11,678 --> 00:10:14,312
and then you would
just sit by them,
191
00:10:14,314 --> 00:10:16,548
and you would just ask them
where they were playing,
192
00:10:16,550 --> 00:10:19,618
or how come you
weren't here yesterday.
193
00:10:19,620 --> 00:10:23,088
Paul was always nice
and always friendly,
194
00:10:23,090 --> 00:10:27,492
and any time you'd ask Paul to sing something,
he would do it.
195
00:10:27,494 --> 00:10:30,929
John... a man of many moods.
196
00:10:30,931 --> 00:10:34,065
It depended on what side of the bed
he got out in in the morning.
197
00:10:34,067 --> 00:10:36,201
He could be really grumpy,
198
00:10:36,203 --> 00:10:39,571
but he was always himself,
he never put an act on.
199
00:10:39,573 --> 00:10:42,240
People say George
was the quiet Beatle,
200
00:10:42,242 --> 00:10:44,309
and I suppose he
was in one way,
201
00:10:44,311 --> 00:10:46,311
but he was
never quiet with me.
202
00:10:46,313 --> 00:10:50,015
He was more quietly-spoken,
I think, than the others.
203
00:10:50,017 --> 00:10:52,817
He was very thoughtful.
204
00:10:52,819 --> 00:10:57,656
Ringo hadn't joined the group yet;
Pete Bass was on the drums.
205
00:10:57,658 --> 00:10:59,858
Pete was very shy,
and he was also very handsome,
206
00:10:59,860 --> 00:11:02,594
so he had a big following
around town, from the girls.
207
00:11:02,596 --> 00:11:04,362
They loved Pete.
208
00:11:06,032 --> 00:11:10,435
They all lived my way home,
on the south side of Liverpool,
209
00:11:10,437 --> 00:11:12,837
and Paul and George had cars,
210
00:11:12,839 --> 00:11:15,306
and then they'd say
"Do you want a lift home?"
211
00:11:15,308 --> 00:11:18,143
My father wasn't keen
on them, he saw them
212
00:11:18,145 --> 00:11:20,412
and what he saw
he didn't like.
213
00:11:20,414 --> 00:11:21,980
If they'd had
suits on, or somebody
214
00:11:21,982 --> 00:11:23,515
had a suit with
a collar and tie,
215
00:11:23,517 --> 00:11:25,650
he probably
would've approved of them,
216
00:11:25,652 --> 00:11:28,820
but he didn't
approve of The Beatles.
217
00:11:29,955 --> 00:11:34,859
?[worn vinyl sensual music]
218
00:11:36,195 --> 00:11:38,596
But I was always
late back from work,
219
00:11:38,598 --> 00:11:41,800
I was always pushing
and puffing and panting
220
00:11:41,802 --> 00:11:45,804
and sitting down
and starting to type.
221
00:11:45,806 --> 00:11:48,173
I couldn't say I
was somewhere else
222
00:11:48,175 --> 00:11:50,942
or I got held up in a restaurant
or trying to get some food
223
00:11:50,944 --> 00:11:53,011
because I had
the Cavern smell on me,
224
00:11:53,013 --> 00:11:55,046
so they knew
exactly where I'd been.
225
00:11:55,048 --> 00:11:58,383
The girls in the typing pool
had photographs up on the wall
226
00:11:58,385 --> 00:12:03,955
of Pat Boone and Elvis
and Tommy Steele and Cliff Richard,
227
00:12:03,957 --> 00:12:06,491
and I didn't like any of them,
228
00:12:06,493 --> 00:12:07,826
so I found a little picture
of The Beatles,
229
00:12:07,828 --> 00:12:09,661
but it was only dead small,
230
00:12:09,663 --> 00:12:11,696
and I remember
putting it up on the wall,
231
00:12:11,698 --> 00:12:15,266
and the personnel
manager caught me
232
00:12:15,268 --> 00:12:18,136
when I was putting it up on the wall,
Mr. Mold, and he said,
233
00:12:18,138 --> 00:12:20,839
"Oh, what are you doing,
who are they?"
234
00:12:20,841 --> 00:12:22,207
and I said "Oh,
they're The Beatles,"
235
00:12:22,209 --> 00:12:23,508
and he went
"Who's The Beatles?"
236
00:12:23,510 --> 00:12:24,976
and I said "They're
a Liverpool group,"
237
00:12:24,978 --> 00:12:26,344
and he went
"Never heard of them,"
238
00:12:26,346 --> 00:12:29,114
and I said "Oh,
you will one day."
239
00:12:42,528 --> 00:12:44,395
Bobbie Brown was the girl
who went to The Cavern
240
00:12:44,397 --> 00:12:46,531
and started a fan
club for The Beatles.
241
00:12:46,533 --> 00:12:49,000
Now, I couldn't understand why
The Beatles had a fan club,
242
00:12:49,002 --> 00:12:50,735
because they were
just a local group,
243
00:12:50,737 --> 00:12:53,671
but I eventually
ended up helping Bobbie,
244
00:12:53,673 --> 00:12:55,073
and then Bobbie
got a boyfriend
245
00:12:55,075 --> 00:12:58,343
and lost interest in running
the Beatles fan club,
246
00:12:58,345 --> 00:13:00,445
so I took over from there.
247
00:13:00,447 --> 00:13:03,681
I was buying stamps
and salve in the beginning,
248
00:13:03,683 --> 00:13:09,687
and I remember being in the
band room one day lunch time
249
00:13:09,689 --> 00:13:13,091
and saying to Paul,
"You owe me seven six for stamps,"
250
00:13:13,093 --> 00:13:15,393
and he went "I
haven't any money."
251
00:13:15,395 --> 00:13:16,895
And then Bob Waller paid them,
252
00:13:16,897 --> 00:13:18,830
and I sat in the band room
until Bob Waller paid them,
253
00:13:18,832 --> 00:13:20,832
and I said
"You've now got money."
254
00:13:20,834 --> 00:13:22,600
So he give him
his due and paid me.
255
00:13:24,270 --> 00:13:27,205
I just had this faith
-- and there wasn't just me --
256
00:13:27,207 --> 00:13:29,974
you just knew they were going
to be famous one day,
257
00:13:29,976 --> 00:13:33,945
but I couldn't visualize
the fame that they got.
258
00:13:33,947 --> 00:13:37,315
To me, being famous
was playing on The Empire,
259
00:13:37,317 --> 00:13:39,284
having a record in the charts.
260
00:13:39,286 --> 00:13:41,286
Cliff Richard was
big in those days,
261
00:13:41,288 --> 00:13:43,988
and being as big
as Cliff Richard,
262
00:13:43,990 --> 00:13:47,759
that was as far
as my vision went.
263
00:13:47,761 --> 00:13:50,829
[Billy] Everything was new, nobody knew
what was going to happen.
264
00:13:50,831 --> 00:13:52,230
People who ever
say to you, "We knew
265
00:13:52,232 --> 00:13:53,598
they were going
to be a success,"
266
00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:55,033
they're lying
through their teeth.
267
00:13:55,035 --> 00:13:59,370
Nobody knew it was going to be
the world phenomenon that it became.
268
00:13:59,372 --> 00:14:03,274
?[music]
269
00:14:04,410 --> 00:14:07,779
I got to know Brian Epstein
through The Beatles.
270
00:14:11,116 --> 00:14:12,917
I was going to see The Beatles
all the time,
271
00:14:12,919 --> 00:14:15,186
and then Brian Epstein
started to come to see them
272
00:14:15,188 --> 00:14:17,355
and that's how we
became friendly.
273
00:14:18,524 --> 00:14:20,725
Everybody in
Liverpool knew who he was,
274
00:14:20,727 --> 00:14:22,894
because he was
manager of NEMS Ltd.,
275
00:14:22,896 --> 00:14:25,830
the biggest record shop in
the north of England.
276
00:14:25,832 --> 00:14:30,101
I do remember it was by
St. Barnabas's Hall in Penny Lane,
277
00:14:30,103 --> 00:14:32,036
it was a Saturday night,
I walked in,
278
00:14:32,038 --> 00:14:34,439
I just know Eppy
coming up to me,
279
00:14:34,441 --> 00:14:37,242
and he then told me that he
was signing The Beatles
280
00:14:37,244 --> 00:14:41,546
and he was starting his own firm
and he needed a secretary.
281
00:14:41,548 --> 00:14:44,182
Then he said, did I want to
come and work for them,
282
00:14:44,184 --> 00:14:48,286
and I said "Oh, go on then."
I just remember saying, "Oh go on then."
283
00:14:48,288 --> 00:14:51,456
And I was so excited because
I was starting my dream job,
284
00:14:51,458 --> 00:14:53,424
working for The Beatles.
285
00:14:57,463 --> 00:15:03,635
[Tony Barrow] I think what Brian Epstein
saw was somebody who was a fan
286
00:15:03,637 --> 00:15:07,572
without being
an over-the-top fanatic.
287
00:15:07,574 --> 00:15:10,074
I would call her
more of an admirer;
288
00:15:10,076 --> 00:15:13,878
she appreciated The Beatles,
and that fitted perfectly, I mean,
289
00:15:13,880 --> 00:15:17,015
Freda was there on the scene
and ready to take over.
290
00:15:17,017 --> 00:15:19,183
We had a lot of
respect for Brian,
291
00:15:19,185 --> 00:15:23,354
obviously, we thought he was
really posh, you know,
292
00:15:23,356 --> 00:15:25,723
we were all Liverpool screw-offs really,
but Brian was very posh,
293
00:15:25,725 --> 00:15:29,694
and for him to choose Freda
to be the secretary,
294
00:15:29,696 --> 00:15:31,763
we thought "Hey, wow,
she must have something,"
295
00:15:31,765 --> 00:15:33,366
you know,
he could have picked anybody.
296
00:15:37,002 --> 00:15:39,904
That's when I
had to tell home,
297
00:15:39,906 --> 00:15:47,512
'cos I didn't want to tell home,
'cos I just knew the reaction.
298
00:15:47,514 --> 00:15:51,849
My mother died when I was eighteen months,
and she died of cancer.
299
00:15:51,851 --> 00:15:54,018
I had a good
relationship with my father,
300
00:15:54,020 --> 00:15:58,690
but also he was very protective towards me
because I was his only child.
301
00:15:58,692 --> 00:16:03,728
I was 17, so I managed to
pluck up the courage
302
00:16:03,730 --> 00:16:05,496
this particular
night at tea time,
303
00:16:05,498 --> 00:16:12,070
and I just said casually
"I'm starting a new job on Monday."
304
00:16:12,072 --> 00:16:13,838
And I do remember
him saying "Has it got
305
00:16:13,840 --> 00:16:15,573
anything to do
with The Beatles?"
306
00:16:15,575 --> 00:16:18,710
and I just blanked it,
I must have turned it back
307
00:16:18,712 --> 00:16:22,280
'cos I know I didn't lie,
but I didn't answer the question,
308
00:16:22,282 --> 00:16:27,151
and all I remember was the teapot
going down with a big slam.
309
00:16:44,069 --> 00:16:45,903
[Freda] We used to call him
Daddy Eppy;
310
00:16:45,905 --> 00:16:50,341
he was Brian Epstein's father,
and it was his business.
311
00:16:50,343 --> 00:16:53,144
We were on the top
floor of his shop.
312
00:16:53,146 --> 00:16:54,779
The first floor was
what we used to call
313
00:16:54,781 --> 00:16:56,314
the "white goods":
it was televisions
314
00:16:56,316 --> 00:16:59,450
and washing machines
and things like that,
315
00:16:59,452 --> 00:17:02,920
and then on the second floor,
that was Brian Epstein's office,
316
00:17:02,922 --> 00:17:08,092
and then there was a store room
behind his office,
317
00:17:08,094 --> 00:17:10,361
so I worked in the store room.
318
00:17:10,363 --> 00:17:12,430
They changed that
into an office for me.
319
00:17:14,066 --> 00:17:15,933
In the beginning,
the lads were
320
00:17:15,935 --> 00:17:17,736
in the office
nearly every single day,
321
00:17:17,737 --> 00:17:19,871
you know,
they just popped in and out.
322
00:17:19,873 --> 00:17:22,140
They would sit by
my desk for a chat
323
00:17:22,142 --> 00:17:24,275
or while they were waiting to go
into Eppy's office,
324
00:17:24,277 --> 00:17:26,577
so I got to know them more.
325
00:17:26,579 --> 00:17:31,549
I was 17, so naturally
I did have crushes on them.
326
00:17:31,551 --> 00:17:34,752
The way I describe it,
and this is the truth,
327
00:17:34,754 --> 00:17:39,090
if Paul looked nice or sang
a song for me or something,
328
00:17:39,092 --> 00:17:42,293
I was in love with Paul that day,
I fancied him that day,
329
00:17:42,295 --> 00:17:46,030
but then the following day,
if Ritchie asked me how me dogs were
330
00:17:46,032 --> 00:17:48,566
(because he knew I
had Yorkshire Terriers,
331
00:17:48,568 --> 00:17:51,002
he'd say "Oh,
how are the dogs?")
332
00:17:51,004 --> 00:17:53,771
I'd think "Oh,
yeah, I fancy Ritchie,"
333
00:17:53,773 --> 00:17:57,442
and then I think, if George offered me
a lift home from work,
334
00:17:57,444 --> 00:17:59,510
I'd be in love
with George that day,
335
00:17:59,512 --> 00:18:02,180
and I'd think "Yeah, yeah,
I definitely fancy George."
336
00:18:02,182 --> 00:18:07,452
But then if John came in
and started talking about various things,
337
00:18:07,454 --> 00:18:13,024
I'd think "I like his nose,
I like the Roman nose,"
338
00:18:13,026 --> 00:18:16,327
but it would only
be for a day or two.
339
00:18:17,796 --> 00:18:19,931
Did you go out
with any of them?
340
00:18:19,933 --> 00:18:22,333
No.
341
00:18:26,271 --> 00:18:28,840
Pass.
342
00:18:28,842 --> 00:18:30,575
No stories there?
343
00:18:30,577 --> 00:18:32,276
Oh, there is stories,
344
00:18:32,278 --> 00:18:38,116
but I don't want anybody's hair
falling out or turning curly.
345
00:18:38,118 --> 00:18:40,218
That's personal.
346
00:18:43,856 --> 00:18:45,389
It was the end
of a working day,
347
00:18:45,391 --> 00:18:46,891
and Eppy just
came in and said,
348
00:18:46,893 --> 00:18:48,392
"Come on Freda,
put your coat on,
349
00:18:48,394 --> 00:18:49,861
I'm going to
take you somewhere."
350
00:18:49,863 --> 00:18:51,329
I had no idea where.
351
00:18:51,331 --> 00:18:53,798
And next minute we
were at The Empire,
352
00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:57,101
and then next minute
we were in the box,
353
00:18:57,103 --> 00:19:02,607
I'd never been in the box of The Empire.
It was this one on the left.
354
00:19:02,609 --> 00:19:03,975
He'd managed to
get The Beatles
355
00:19:03,977 --> 00:19:05,309
a spot on
the Little Richard show,
356
00:19:05,311 --> 00:19:07,245
and I think somebody
was sick or something
357
00:19:07,247 --> 00:19:09,113
and he'd managed
to get them on.
358
00:19:09,115 --> 00:19:10,548
And I remember
sitting in the box,
359
00:19:10,550 --> 00:19:13,551
it was just Eppy and I,
and I was to the left,
360
00:19:13,553 --> 00:19:15,319
and then I looked
down on the stage
361
00:19:15,321 --> 00:19:18,689
and the whole theatre and the stage
were in darkness,
362
00:19:18,691 --> 00:19:21,492
except for this light
shining on Paul's face,
363
00:19:21,494 --> 00:19:23,794
and he was singing
A Taste of Honey.
364
00:19:27,432 --> 00:19:29,901
I don't cry,
but my eyes sort of filled up
365
00:19:29,903 --> 00:19:33,037
and I just couldn't believe
that The Beatles were on The Empire,
366
00:19:33,039 --> 00:19:35,373
the biggest
theatre in Liverpool,
367
00:19:35,375 --> 00:19:38,609
and I thought
"This is it. They've made it.
368
00:19:38,611 --> 00:19:41,913
They're going to
be famous one day."
369
00:19:50,722 --> 00:19:58,963
?[harmonica music]
370
00:20:05,437 --> 00:20:09,006
The Beatles' first hit, as far as I'm concerned,
was Love Me Do, I mean,
371
00:20:09,008 --> 00:20:10,441
I was one of
the ones that bought it,
372
00:20:10,443 --> 00:20:11,842
and I didn't have
a record player,
373
00:20:11,844 --> 00:20:13,044
and there was
loads of girls like me
374
00:20:13,046 --> 00:20:14,212
that didn't have
record players,
375
00:20:14,214 --> 00:20:18,015
but we bought it
just to boost the sales.
376
00:20:20,385 --> 00:20:22,286
You didn't have
pop stations then,
377
00:20:22,288 --> 00:20:25,056
but we had one station
called Radio Luxembourg,
378
00:20:25,058 --> 00:20:27,892
and they used
to do the charts,
379
00:20:27,894 --> 00:20:29,560
and I remember
staying up late,
380
00:20:29,562 --> 00:20:33,364
sitting by the radio,
holding the knob,
381
00:20:33,366 --> 00:20:38,002
trying to keep it on
the same wavelength,
382
00:20:38,004 --> 00:20:41,539
and waiting to hear
The Beatles' record.
383
00:20:44,509 --> 00:20:48,613
And when it got to 17,
that was amazing.
384
00:20:48,615 --> 00:20:51,449
I know it only stayed the week,
I think, but it didn't matter.
385
00:20:51,451 --> 00:20:53,417
They were in the charts.
386
00:20:58,657 --> 00:21:04,128
I was working for Brian Epstein,
doing a normal day-job,
387
00:21:04,130 --> 00:21:07,131
but I also had to do
the fan club overnight.
388
00:21:07,133 --> 00:21:12,270
Silly me, I gave out my home address
as the fan club address.
389
00:21:14,373 --> 00:21:16,340
The postman
knocked on the door
390
00:21:16,342 --> 00:21:18,909
and he said to me,
"Who gave this address out?
391
00:21:18,911 --> 00:21:20,911
You've got 200 letters here."
392
00:21:20,913 --> 00:21:24,081
And I said, "Sorry,
won't do it again time."
393
00:21:24,083 --> 00:21:27,051
Little did he know,
within the next
394
00:21:27,053 --> 00:21:29,954
few months The Beatles
became more famous,
395
00:21:29,956 --> 00:21:33,224
and instead of just 200 letters,
they were coming in bundles,
396
00:21:33,226 --> 00:21:37,094
and those bundles came in sacks,
so the van rolled up.
397
00:21:39,698 --> 00:21:42,033
My father wasn't keen
on The Beatles anyway,
398
00:21:42,035 --> 00:21:45,169
and his own
personal mail, you know,
399
00:21:45,171 --> 00:21:47,638
your telephone bill,
electricity bill,
400
00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:50,007
your gas bill,
all in the fan mail.
401
00:21:50,009 --> 00:21:52,410
So he just
looked at me and said,
402
00:21:52,412 --> 00:21:54,745
"You've got to
put a stop to this.
403
00:21:54,747 --> 00:21:59,317
What possessed you to give
our home address out?"
404
00:21:59,319 --> 00:22:01,619
I didn't think at the time.
405
00:22:19,338 --> 00:22:22,306
My mother has never
played the fame game.
406
00:22:22,308 --> 00:22:25,109
If she had, things would be
completely different now,
407
00:22:25,111 --> 00:22:27,044
and she might not be working
six days a week
408
00:22:27,046 --> 00:22:29,480
9 'til 5 o'clock at night,
very stressed,
409
00:22:29,482 --> 00:22:33,017
when other people have retired,
and she hasn't got that joy.
410
00:22:33,852 --> 00:22:36,654
These are all
Christmas decorations.
411
00:22:49,301 --> 00:22:51,435
Oh, success.
412
00:22:54,706 --> 00:22:57,141
I kept a couple of scrapbooks
413
00:22:57,143 --> 00:23:01,278
with theatre tickets in,
and newspaper cuttings in.
414
00:23:07,819 --> 00:23:10,121
A few fan club letters.
415
00:23:11,690 --> 00:23:14,024
Yeah, they're old.
416
00:23:14,026 --> 00:23:16,961
I think it's records,
and, oh, me scrapbook.
417
00:23:18,864 --> 00:23:22,433
Yeah. Cuttings book.
418
00:23:25,871 --> 00:23:28,272
I mean I have a lot of these.
419
00:23:30,509 --> 00:23:32,309
I don't know.
420
00:23:32,311 --> 00:23:38,549
Forty years since
Rachel was born.
421
00:23:41,953 --> 00:23:44,455
I could have been
a very very wealthy woman,
422
00:23:44,457 --> 00:23:47,324
could be a millionairess
if I'd have kept everything.
423
00:23:47,326 --> 00:23:49,794
I had loads of autographs,
photographs,
424
00:23:49,796 --> 00:23:55,032
all the fan club stuff,
Apple stuff, fan club records,
425
00:23:55,034 --> 00:23:59,003
but over a period of time,
I gave it all away.
426
00:23:59,005 --> 00:24:00,971
But I don't regret that,
427
00:24:00,973 --> 00:24:04,341
because I know when I gave
the majority of the stuff away,
428
00:24:04,343 --> 00:24:06,911
I gave it in 1974,
429
00:24:06,913 --> 00:24:13,884
and I actually handed the stuff
to Beatle fans myself,
430
00:24:13,886 --> 00:24:18,456
so I knew the Beatle fans got
all the fan club stuff that was left.
431
00:24:18,458 --> 00:24:20,157
I've got these
four boxes anyway.
432
00:24:20,159 --> 00:24:23,461
I didn't even
think I had four boxes.
433
00:24:25,363 --> 00:24:27,498
As I'm flicking through,
434
00:24:27,500 --> 00:24:30,134
there are so many memories
coming back to me.
435
00:24:30,136 --> 00:24:33,070
I'll just pick something up,
and I'll remember that day.
436
00:24:37,809 --> 00:24:42,179
Oh, this is George
Harrison's real hair.
437
00:24:42,181 --> 00:24:45,950
?[rock and roll music]
438
00:24:47,419 --> 00:24:49,920
A few months after Love Me Do,
439
00:24:49,922 --> 00:24:53,657
the lads had their first number one hit,
which was Please Please Me.
440
00:24:53,659 --> 00:24:55,726
We were gradually
getting letters,
441
00:24:55,728 --> 00:24:58,996
from 50 a day,
200 a day, to my home,
442
00:24:58,998 --> 00:25:04,535
and then it worked up
to about 800 a day,
443
00:25:04,537 --> 00:25:06,904
and then eventually
we didn't even count them,
444
00:25:06,906 --> 00:25:09,340
we just threw
the mail in the corner.
445
00:25:11,476 --> 00:25:14,245
I would put loads of photographs
in front of them,
446
00:25:14,247 --> 00:25:17,348
and they would go in to Eppy,
447
00:25:17,350 --> 00:25:19,416
and they would take the photographs
in with them,
448
00:25:19,418 --> 00:25:21,519
and while they
were talking to Eppy,
449
00:25:21,521 --> 00:25:23,954
they were all signing.
450
00:25:23,956 --> 00:25:26,457
But they never complained
about signing things,
451
00:25:26,459 --> 00:25:28,225
never ever.
452
00:25:28,227 --> 00:25:31,962
I think it was
because it was early days
453
00:25:31,964 --> 00:25:35,232
and they were all
excited by it all,
454
00:25:35,234 --> 00:25:38,369
so nothing was a problem.
455
00:25:38,371 --> 00:25:40,671
Out of all The Beatles,
I'd say George
456
00:25:40,673 --> 00:25:42,907
was the best one
for signing things.
457
00:25:42,909 --> 00:25:45,009
He would come in and he'd go,
458
00:25:45,011 --> 00:25:47,878
"Do you want me
to sign anything?
459
00:25:47,880 --> 00:25:50,447
What have you got
in your cupboard?"
460
00:26:00,392 --> 00:26:03,127
The Beatles called
him Eppy, we all did,
461
00:26:03,129 --> 00:26:07,898
but to his face, he asked us
to call him Mr. Brian in the office.
462
00:26:07,900 --> 00:26:10,367
He was the boss
so it was Mister.
463
00:26:12,337 --> 00:26:15,639
He had an aura about him.
464
00:26:15,641 --> 00:26:17,308
I know he was
probably only 27 then,
465
00:26:17,310 --> 00:26:21,545
but he was old. Ten years was
a big difference in those days,
466
00:26:21,547 --> 00:26:23,447
where I'm 17, he's 27.
467
00:26:23,449 --> 00:26:27,518
He came from a well-off family
and he had nice clothes
468
00:26:27,520 --> 00:26:32,156
and spoke with a posh accent,
so you had respect for him.
469
00:26:32,158 --> 00:26:36,727
He threw a few
tantrums in the office,
470
00:26:36,729 --> 00:26:39,096
and you just
kept out of his way.
471
00:26:39,098 --> 00:26:40,364
Well, I did.
472
00:26:40,366 --> 00:26:42,766
Probably that's why
I lasted ten years.
473
00:26:42,768 --> 00:26:45,402
Some people didn't,
or retaliated,
474
00:26:45,404 --> 00:26:48,572
and they were
sacked on the spot.
475
00:26:48,574 --> 00:26:51,809
He was the boss, and he
was the boss.
476
00:26:51,811 --> 00:26:58,716
Brian Epstein was notorious for
his dreadful tantrums.
477
00:26:58,718 --> 00:27:01,452
He would hire and re-fire
his top executives
478
00:27:01,454 --> 00:27:04,521
at the drop of a hat.
479
00:27:04,523 --> 00:27:07,291
Freda was sort of immune,
if you like,
480
00:27:07,293 --> 00:27:09,627
to the temper tantrums.
481
00:27:09,629 --> 00:27:11,795
She was never hurt by them.
482
00:27:11,797 --> 00:27:14,732
?[music]
483
00:27:14,734 --> 00:27:16,967
We had a new dictaphone,
484
00:27:16,969 --> 00:27:20,471
and he gave me this tape to do
while he was out,
485
00:27:20,473 --> 00:27:25,209
and I'd done about two letters
and the tape got stuck.
486
00:27:25,211 --> 00:27:27,711
So Neil Aspinall
came in and I said,
487
00:27:27,713 --> 00:27:30,414
"Oh God, I've got this tape and
I've got it stuck,
488
00:27:30,416 --> 00:27:33,751
and there's
a load of work on it."
489
00:27:33,753 --> 00:27:39,757
We pressed two things, and we
erased all the work.
490
00:27:43,995 --> 00:27:48,832
He came in the office,
and I just saw John at the back of him,
491
00:27:48,834 --> 00:27:50,367
and he went to
hang up the coat,
492
00:27:50,369 --> 00:27:52,089
and he said,
"Have you finished the tape?"
493
00:27:52,937 --> 00:27:56,306
and I just said "No.
I'm sorry, no.
494
00:27:56,308 --> 00:27:59,243
I've wiped it by mistake."
495
00:28:01,513 --> 00:28:06,083
He just looked at me, and then
shouted "You stupid girl!!"
496
00:28:06,085 --> 00:28:08,352
and John Lennon saved the day,
497
00:28:08,354 --> 00:28:10,054
because he was behind me,
498
00:28:10,056 --> 00:28:12,289
and he must have
seen how shaken I was,
499
00:28:12,291 --> 00:28:16,260
and Eppy about to erupt.
500
00:28:16,262 --> 00:28:20,197
He started laughing, and going
"Oh, what have you done, Kelly?"
501
00:28:20,199 --> 00:28:22,866
and when a Beatle laughed,
Eppy laughed.
502
00:28:22,868 --> 00:28:25,169
But it wasn't a proper laugh.
503
00:28:25,171 --> 00:28:27,371
He wasn't amused at all.
504
00:28:27,373 --> 00:28:29,373
And I just
remember looking at him
505
00:28:29,375 --> 00:28:31,341
and saying "I'll
stay late to do it."
506
00:28:31,343 --> 00:28:33,110
and he said, "I know you will,
507
00:28:33,112 --> 00:28:36,346
you'll definitely stay late,
until all this work is done."
508
00:28:41,052 --> 00:28:45,456
I was very
naive for my age;
509
00:28:45,458 --> 00:28:48,959
I just came into the music business
when I was 17,
510
00:28:48,961 --> 00:28:54,031
up until I was 16, I'm camping with
the Guides and things like that.
511
00:28:55,233 --> 00:28:58,168
Once I joined
the Beatles organization,
512
00:28:58,170 --> 00:29:01,505
I grew up overnight
in more ways than one,
513
00:29:01,507 --> 00:29:04,274
and I remember saying to John,
514
00:29:04,276 --> 00:29:07,244
"You know what? I don't know
what it is about him--"
515
00:29:07,246 --> 00:29:09,146
I said "I can't
put me finger on it,"
516
00:29:09,148 --> 00:29:11,348
and I know I was
rabbiting on for England,
517
00:29:11,350 --> 00:29:13,117
and John started laughing,
518
00:29:13,119 --> 00:29:15,252
and then he went
"Have you no idea?"
519
00:29:15,254 --> 00:29:18,355
and I said,
"No idea about what?"
520
00:29:19,224 --> 00:29:22,426
He put it to me
very innocently,
521
00:29:22,428 --> 00:29:24,728
and I always
respect him for that,
522
00:29:24,730 --> 00:29:26,663
he said,
"Well let's say this, Fre,
523
00:29:26,665 --> 00:29:29,433
if you're on a desert island with him,
you'd be safe."
524
00:29:30,969 --> 00:29:32,903
And the penny dropped.
525
00:29:32,905 --> 00:29:35,906
Where nowadays it's legal,
and quite rightly so,
526
00:29:35,908 --> 00:29:39,042
but in those days they had
a lot to put up with.
527
00:29:39,044 --> 00:29:42,346
Probably that had a lot to do
with his mood-swings as well,
528
00:29:42,348 --> 00:29:44,882
and trying to keep
it from his parents
529
00:29:44,884 --> 00:29:47,050
and other people.
530
00:29:52,257 --> 00:29:56,126
The music industry was
a man's industry in the '60s.
531
00:29:56,128 --> 00:29:58,128
In The Beatles' circle,
532
00:29:58,130 --> 00:30:00,497
there wasn't any
high-ranking women.
533
00:30:02,834 --> 00:30:06,003
Women, or girls,
worked on the admin side,
534
00:30:06,005 --> 00:30:08,405
but the highest
you can go in admin
535
00:30:08,407 --> 00:30:11,308
is just be
secretary to the main guy.
536
00:30:12,210 --> 00:30:14,578
I was secretary
to Brian Epstein,
537
00:30:14,580 --> 00:30:17,114
but there wasn't
a hard road to climb,
538
00:30:17,116 --> 00:30:18,982
you just had to stay there.
539
00:30:23,488 --> 00:30:25,322
There was a lot to get done,
540
00:30:25,324 --> 00:30:28,625
so anybody that
came into the office,
541
00:30:28,627 --> 00:30:31,228
I would put them to work.
542
00:30:33,932 --> 00:30:36,934
I would get them
slicin' the envelopes,
543
00:30:36,936 --> 00:30:39,102
tearin'
the foreign stamps off,
544
00:30:39,104 --> 00:30:41,972
stickin'
photographs in envelopes,
545
00:30:41,974 --> 00:30:43,740
and groups around town
546
00:30:43,742 --> 00:30:46,977
-- because they never had any money,
musicians around town --
547
00:30:46,979 --> 00:30:50,447
they used to come into my office
for a free cup of tea,
548
00:30:50,449 --> 00:30:53,550
or if it was raining,
or to hear the records,
549
00:30:53,552 --> 00:30:55,152
so while they
were sitting there,
550
00:30:55,154 --> 00:30:57,754
nobody sat
there doing nothing.
551
00:30:57,756 --> 00:30:59,857
They all used to help out.
552
00:31:03,194 --> 00:31:05,195
I bumped into
the lead singer of
553
00:31:05,197 --> 00:31:07,130
The Cryin' Shames,
Ritchie Routledge,
554
00:31:07,132 --> 00:31:09,900
and he had a big
post bag on his back,
555
00:31:09,902 --> 00:31:11,435
and I said
"Where are you going?"
556
00:31:11,437 --> 00:31:12,970
he said, "I'm going
to the post office,"
557
00:31:12,972 --> 00:31:16,173
I said "What for?", he said,
"I've got all The Beatles' vinyl stuff
558
00:31:16,175 --> 00:31:19,509
in the bag, Freda told me
-- not asked me, told me --
559
00:31:19,511 --> 00:31:21,211
to go and post it."
560
00:31:21,213 --> 00:31:23,213
She just had
this way about her,
561
00:31:23,215 --> 00:31:25,182
a bit like
a schoolteacher really.
562
00:31:25,184 --> 00:31:27,050
You know, you had to do
what the schoolteacher said,
563
00:31:27,052 --> 00:31:29,920
and you had to do
what Freda said, really.
564
00:31:29,922 --> 00:31:32,723
Well, you didn't have to do it,
you wanted to do it for her,
565
00:31:32,725 --> 00:31:34,858
'cause she'd just
give you a little smile,
566
00:31:34,860 --> 00:31:36,960
and you did it.
567
00:31:40,531 --> 00:31:42,733
When Ringo first
joined the band
568
00:31:42,735 --> 00:31:44,534
-- I think he was only in the band about
two weeks or something --
569
00:31:44,536 --> 00:31:46,770
I came into the office,
he said
570
00:31:46,772 --> 00:31:48,939
"I'm getting
letters to my house,
571
00:31:48,941 --> 00:31:51,909
and if I bring them in,
will you do them?"
572
00:31:51,911 --> 00:31:56,747
And I went "No, I won't," I said,
"I've got too much to do."
573
00:31:56,749 --> 00:31:57,981
I said "Get your
mother to do it,
574
00:31:57,983 --> 00:31:59,216
you know all
the other parents do,"
575
00:31:59,218 --> 00:32:01,985
and he went "Oh, me mum
doesn't know what to do."
576
00:32:01,987 --> 00:32:05,389
He put the sad
eyes on, and just like
577
00:32:05,391 --> 00:32:07,824
"Oh, go on, please?
You know, I don't get many."
578
00:32:07,826 --> 00:32:10,661
To shut him up I went
"Oh go on then, bring them in."
579
00:32:10,663 --> 00:32:16,166
He brought about nine letters
in this little poly bag,
580
00:32:16,168 --> 00:32:18,602
and he actually put
the answers to the
581
00:32:18,604 --> 00:32:20,971
questions that they'd
asked in the letters
582
00:32:20,973 --> 00:32:23,273
on the top of
the letter to help me,
583
00:32:23,275 --> 00:32:25,075
'cos he said to me,
"If you don't know the answers
584
00:32:25,077 --> 00:32:26,977
I've put the answers down
for you and everything."
585
00:32:26,979 --> 00:32:28,445
He must have
thought I was terrible,
586
00:32:28,447 --> 00:32:33,417
'cos I looked at him and I said
to him "Is this all you get?"
587
00:32:33,419 --> 00:32:36,720
I couldn't believe-- he must
have wanted to shoot me,
588
00:32:36,722 --> 00:32:39,790
and I went, "You've only got
nine letters."
589
00:32:39,792 --> 00:32:41,992
He said, "Will you help me?
590
00:32:41,994 --> 00:32:45,128
Will you come and
show me mum what to do?"
591
00:32:45,130 --> 00:32:49,366
I ended up going 'round,
knocking on 10 Admiral Grove,
592
00:32:49,368 --> 00:32:52,669
and Elsie opened the door,
and I said, "I'm Freda from the office,"
593
00:32:52,671 --> 00:32:55,706
and she went, "Oh, thank God for that,
come in, love, come in."
594
00:32:55,708 --> 00:32:57,607
And I said, "Well,
I've just brought stuff
595
00:32:57,609 --> 00:32:59,443
for you,
to show you what to do."
596
00:32:59,445 --> 00:33:02,279
She said,
"Have you had any tea?"
597
00:33:02,281 --> 00:33:04,715
And I said "No," and she went,
"Would you like egg and chips?"
598
00:33:04,717 --> 00:33:06,483
and I said, "Oh, I'd love
egg and chips, yeah."
599
00:33:06,485 --> 00:33:10,854
And then we started talking,
and we got on like a house on fire.
600
00:33:10,856 --> 00:33:16,259
Every week, for years,
I went to that house.
601
00:33:16,261 --> 00:33:17,828
Will the neighbors
not become envious
602
00:33:17,830 --> 00:33:20,097
of all the wealth that's been
accumulated by the Beatles?
603
00:33:20,099 --> 00:33:22,332
No, not
the neighbors 'round here,
604
00:33:22,334 --> 00:33:24,968
they're all very good
and all quite proud.
605
00:33:30,441 --> 00:33:35,178
Comin' back now,
just everything is flashing in me head
606
00:33:35,180 --> 00:33:38,081
about just how
much joy and happiness
607
00:33:38,083 --> 00:33:40,917
and laughter went
on in this house.
608
00:33:40,919 --> 00:33:43,053
I had a great time here.
I loved it,
609
00:33:43,055 --> 00:33:45,088
I loved coming
here every week.
610
00:33:47,792 --> 00:33:51,328
It's probably...
I haven't been in this house
611
00:33:51,330 --> 00:33:54,564
for about 46 years.
612
00:33:54,566 --> 00:33:56,800
I spent a lot of my life here.
613
00:33:56,802 --> 00:33:59,136
I used to stay 'til about
1 or 2 in the morning,
614
00:33:59,138 --> 00:34:02,039
going through the mail,
and talking, and laughing,
615
00:34:02,041 --> 00:34:05,942
things about my life as well,
and who I was going out with at the time.
616
00:34:05,944 --> 00:34:08,578
And it's not one of The Beatles,
before you start.
617
00:34:08,580 --> 00:34:11,415
Elsie'd give me advice,
motherly advice.
618
00:34:13,885 --> 00:34:17,087
She was very jolly,
very outgoing,
619
00:34:17,089 --> 00:34:19,856
and a really strong laugh.
620
00:34:19,858 --> 00:34:24,461
I told her all my secrets
when I was a teenager.
621
00:34:24,463 --> 00:34:27,831
Maybe she looked on the daughter
that she didn't have,
622
00:34:27,833 --> 00:34:30,133
maybe she
looked on me as that.
623
00:34:31,302 --> 00:34:35,072
She decided I wasn't getting
enough money, wages,
624
00:34:35,074 --> 00:34:39,242
and she was at a party,
and Eppy was there,
625
00:34:39,244 --> 00:34:42,446
and then she, few drinks down,
and then she starts in on him
626
00:34:42,448 --> 00:34:44,881
and said "You don't know
what you've got there,
627
00:34:44,883 --> 00:34:46,883
you've got
a good worker there."
628
00:34:46,885 --> 00:34:49,319
And she was going on and on,
and I was going "Well, shut up."
629
00:34:49,321 --> 00:34:51,621
And she was going, "You should pay her
some more money, you know.
630
00:34:51,623 --> 00:34:54,558
You don't pay her enough money.
You should give her a rise."
631
00:34:54,560 --> 00:34:59,262
I really got a rise,
two weeks later.
632
00:34:59,264 --> 00:35:03,233
His words were,
"We've reviewed your wages, Freda,
633
00:35:03,235 --> 00:35:05,635
and we've decided
to give you a rise."
634
00:35:09,340 --> 00:35:12,008
Well, you asked me about
a mother figure before --
635
00:35:12,010 --> 00:35:14,377
she was the nearest
to a mother figure for me.
636
00:35:14,379 --> 00:35:16,413
I just adored her.
637
00:35:17,482 --> 00:35:20,150
Once
The Beatles were in London
638
00:35:20,152 --> 00:35:23,153
and criss-crossing the globe,
639
00:35:23,155 --> 00:35:26,523
Freda became probably
the link
640
00:35:26,525 --> 00:35:32,262
between the Beatles' families in Liverpool
and each individual Beatle.
641
00:35:32,264 --> 00:35:34,131
I was surprised
when I met her,
642
00:35:34,133 --> 00:35:38,001
because I thought, to have taken on
this mammoth, ridiculous job,
643
00:35:38,003 --> 00:35:40,837
she must have been
some 50-year-old,
644
00:35:40,839 --> 00:35:43,573
settled-in-her-ways
old secretary
645
00:35:43,575 --> 00:35:47,377
with bad feet and a large bosom,
but she was anything but:
646
00:35:47,379 --> 00:35:50,514
she was vivacious
and fun and just a snip
647
00:35:50,516 --> 00:35:53,617
of a teenager,
this young, thin girl.
648
00:35:53,619 --> 00:35:57,888
I suppose you could say that
The Beatles saw her as a sister,
649
00:35:57,890 --> 00:36:01,558
and the families
saw her as a daughter.
650
00:36:01,560 --> 00:36:04,694
NEMS used to close
on a Wednesday afternoon,
651
00:36:04,696 --> 00:36:08,498
but I never told home that I was off
on a Wednesday afternoon.
652
00:36:09,934 --> 00:36:14,437
We used to go out with Paul's dad,
we used to call him Uncle Jim,
653
00:36:14,439 --> 00:36:17,374
we used to go to a place called
the Bassnett Bar.
654
00:36:17,376 --> 00:36:20,644
He was trying to educate me
655
00:36:20,646 --> 00:36:25,248
on the cures and cheeses
and coffee and things like that.
656
00:36:25,250 --> 00:36:27,284
Well, I would stay
there and get sozzled,
657
00:36:27,286 --> 00:36:31,121
you know, 'cos I'd be trying
all these different things with them,
658
00:36:31,123 --> 00:36:33,123
and then they would
just put me in a taxi
659
00:36:33,125 --> 00:36:35,045
and I'd go home and
go straight to bed.
660
00:36:37,195 --> 00:36:41,531
Now, John's family...
he only had Mimi.
661
00:36:41,533 --> 00:36:43,667
Mimi was John's aunt.
662
00:36:43,669 --> 00:36:48,939
She took John in when he was about five,
when his parents split up.
663
00:36:48,941 --> 00:36:53,710
Mimi didn't let anybody in that house;
very few people got in.
664
00:36:53,712 --> 00:36:56,913
You had to go 'round the back,
you know, like the tradesmen's entrance,
665
00:36:56,915 --> 00:36:59,683
but I actually went up
and knocked on the front door,
666
00:36:59,685 --> 00:37:01,651
and I got in the front door.
667
00:37:01,653 --> 00:37:03,753
It wasn't that you were
frightened of Mimi,
668
00:37:03,755 --> 00:37:06,489
you just watched
your Ps and Qs.
669
00:37:06,491 --> 00:37:10,126
To me, Mimi was like my father,
she was old-school.
670
00:37:10,128 --> 00:37:14,431
Any time I saw her with John,
which wasn't very often,
671
00:37:14,433 --> 00:37:17,934
she was quite stern
but he did obey her.
672
00:37:23,140 --> 00:37:25,342
I think
the Harrisons enjoyed the fame
673
00:37:25,344 --> 00:37:27,477
more than any of
the other parents.
674
00:37:27,479 --> 00:37:33,283
Mr. and Mrs. Harrison loved it.
They took to it more.
675
00:37:33,285 --> 00:37:36,586
She was
excellent with the fans,
676
00:37:36,588 --> 00:37:39,656
would let them into her house,
would give them a cup of tea,
677
00:37:39,658 --> 00:37:42,292
you know,
every day, she just sat down
678
00:37:42,294 --> 00:37:44,928
and wrote letters
to all these kids.
679
00:37:44,930 --> 00:37:47,530
But they were very
protective of George,
680
00:37:47,532 --> 00:37:50,000
maybe it was because he was
the youngest Beatle.
681
00:37:52,169 --> 00:37:55,772
Mr. Harrison -- Harry Harrison --
was always saying to me,
682
00:37:55,774 --> 00:37:57,641
"You should learn
to dance properly,"
683
00:37:57,643 --> 00:37:59,843
and I said "I don't
wanna learn ballroom
684
00:37:59,845 --> 00:38:01,945
dancing,
I don't really like it,"
685
00:38:01,947 --> 00:38:04,447
and he said "No,
I'm going to teach you."
686
00:38:04,449 --> 00:38:07,550
He would get me up to dance
and show me how to do the quick-step
687
00:38:07,552 --> 00:38:10,687
and the waltz and everything.
688
00:38:10,689 --> 00:38:16,993
So we were like there--
I was really self-conscious about it,
689
00:38:16,995 --> 00:38:19,429
I just did not want to learn
to ballroom dance.
690
00:38:25,569 --> 00:38:28,938
You know, all the families
and all the boys believed in her.
691
00:38:28,940 --> 00:38:32,042
She was 'good old Freda' to them,
in other words.
692
00:38:32,643 --> 00:38:37,514
?[music]
693
00:38:37,516 --> 00:38:40,317
Seeing them on
a regular basis, coming in
694
00:38:40,319 --> 00:38:43,086
and out the office,
going to their homes,
695
00:38:43,088 --> 00:38:48,291
it didn't hit me how big they were
or worshipped they were
696
00:38:48,293 --> 00:38:50,493
until the civic reception,
697
00:38:50,495 --> 00:38:53,396
which was at
the Town Hall in Liverpool.
698
00:38:53,398 --> 00:38:55,498
The only people that
were invited really
699
00:38:55,500 --> 00:39:01,438
were The Beatles themselves
and The Beatles' families,
700
00:39:01,440 --> 00:39:07,043
and that was it,
but Ritchie's family put me down
701
00:39:07,045 --> 00:39:09,679
as one of their family.
702
00:39:13,384 --> 00:39:16,319
We were picked up in a car
from the counsel,
703
00:39:16,321 --> 00:39:18,922
we must have come
in the back way,
704
00:39:18,924 --> 00:39:21,257
and the lads
were already here,
705
00:39:21,259 --> 00:39:25,762
and we had a meal,
so we were all relaxed and everything,
706
00:39:25,764 --> 00:39:30,567
and then next minute,
they then had to go out onto the balcony
707
00:39:30,569 --> 00:39:33,436
and, just as they
opened these doors,
708
00:39:33,438 --> 00:39:37,440
the noise hit us,
with the shouts and the screaming,
709
00:39:37,442 --> 00:39:41,711
[crowd screaming]
710
00:39:41,713 --> 00:39:43,613
and then I came to
behind the door here
711
00:39:43,615 --> 00:39:46,449
and I just couldn't
believe Castle Street.
712
00:39:46,451 --> 00:39:49,886
?[music]
713
00:39:49,888 --> 00:39:55,592
[crowd screaming]
714
00:40:05,436 --> 00:40:08,371
It was just full of people;
715
00:40:08,373 --> 00:40:11,141
as far as the eye could see
was people, everywhere.
716
00:40:12,910 --> 00:40:16,780
I mean, the noise was deafening,
there was chaos in the street,
717
00:40:16,782 --> 00:40:20,417
girls were wriggling and pushing
to get through the crowd,
718
00:40:20,419 --> 00:40:23,753
and they were fainting,
and the ambulance men and police
719
00:40:23,755 --> 00:40:25,388
were just passing
them over the crowds
720
00:40:25,390 --> 00:40:26,956
to get them
into the ambulance.
721
00:40:26,958 --> 00:40:29,926
It was unbelievable.
722
00:40:29,928 --> 00:40:35,532
[crowd screaming and chanting]
723
00:40:37,968 --> 00:40:40,770
I think the penny
actually dropped
724
00:40:40,772 --> 00:40:43,473
with me then,
how big they were,
725
00:40:43,475 --> 00:40:48,077
'cos it hadn't really hit home
until I saw that amount of people,
726
00:40:48,079 --> 00:40:53,116
it was about 200,000 people --
I couldn't even visualize 200,000 people
727
00:40:53,118 --> 00:40:55,185
until I saw it that day.
728
00:40:56,387 --> 00:40:58,455
I think now,
and I think the parents
729
00:40:58,457 --> 00:41:00,457
must have been
so proud of 'em,
730
00:41:00,459 --> 00:41:01,825
that their sons were
out on the balcony,
731
00:41:01,827 --> 00:41:03,960
and Liverpool was
reacting to them.
732
00:41:03,962 --> 00:41:08,331
I'm very proud that
I worked for them.
733
00:41:16,807 --> 00:41:20,410
[interviewer] So what was Beatlemania
to you at the height of it,
734
00:41:20,412 --> 00:41:24,147
when it was its busiest,
what, 1964, '65?
735
00:41:25,249 --> 00:41:28,151
[Freda] No sleep
with all the mail.
736
00:41:28,153 --> 00:41:31,488
[interviewer] How many letters a week
were you getting, roughly?
737
00:41:31,490 --> 00:41:35,859
[Freda] Oh, God, thousands,
two to three thousand a day.
738
00:41:35,861 --> 00:41:39,729
Must have sat up 'til 4,
5 o'clock in the morning
739
00:41:39,731 --> 00:41:44,267
just answering --
I used to do all what we call detail letters --
740
00:41:44,269 --> 00:41:46,269
I used to just
bring all them home
741
00:41:46,271 --> 00:41:49,506
and then go back to work with
me little parcel the next day.
742
00:41:49,508 --> 00:41:51,608
I don't know how I lived.
743
00:41:51,610 --> 00:41:56,279
?[music]
744
00:41:58,716 --> 00:42:03,353
In the wake of the outbreak
of Beatlemania,
745
00:42:03,355 --> 00:42:08,491
there was a very very sudden increase
in interest amongst fans,
746
00:42:08,493 --> 00:42:11,394
people writing in,
asking for autographs,
747
00:42:11,396 --> 00:42:16,666
asking to join
the Beatles fan club, etc.
748
00:42:16,668 --> 00:42:19,602
Brian Epstein decided
that we would have a stamp.
749
00:42:19,604 --> 00:42:21,971
It looked like
a proper signature.
750
00:42:21,973 --> 00:42:25,642
And I remember, sometimes,
I would roll it across the autograph book,
751
00:42:25,644 --> 00:42:28,211
and only half of
it would turn out,
752
00:42:28,213 --> 00:42:30,113
or it would smudge.
753
00:42:30,115 --> 00:42:33,449
I ruined so many
kids' autograph books.
754
00:42:33,451 --> 00:42:35,285
And of course,
I'm a Beatle fan,
755
00:42:35,287 --> 00:42:37,053
so I'm thinking
the way they're thinking,
756
00:42:37,055 --> 00:42:39,589
and I thought "I'd go
mad if that was me."
757
00:42:39,591 --> 00:42:42,559
I know I was against them
and John Lennon was against them as well,
758
00:42:42,561 --> 00:42:45,562
I think he thought because
of the falseness.
759
00:42:45,564 --> 00:42:49,399
I remember John coming in,
and I asked him to sign something,
760
00:42:49,401 --> 00:42:50,900
and he said, "I did that,"
761
00:42:50,902 --> 00:42:52,535
"You don't normally
sign it that way,"
762
00:42:52,537 --> 00:42:54,637
and he said "I've decided to sign that way
from now on,"
763
00:42:54,639 --> 00:42:56,339
and I said,
"Is that because our stamps
764
00:42:56,341 --> 00:42:57,974
look like you
wrote the signature?"
765
00:42:57,976 --> 00:42:59,375
He went "Yeah."
766
00:43:02,780 --> 00:43:05,682
In the end, I thought,
"Oh, I'm dumping them."
767
00:43:05,684 --> 00:43:08,585
I never told Eppy,
I just thought, "Right,
768
00:43:08,587 --> 00:43:11,387
I'll just keep all
these autograph books
769
00:43:11,389 --> 00:43:13,189
and photographs
in the cupboard,
770
00:43:13,191 --> 00:43:17,527
and when the lads come in,
I'll still carry on."
771
00:43:17,529 --> 00:43:20,430
I would know when they were staying
at home in their own houses,
772
00:43:20,432 --> 00:43:23,166
I would know in advance that,
oh, George is coming home tonight,
773
00:43:23,168 --> 00:43:28,671
so I'll nab him, I'll go from the office
straight to Mackets Lane,
774
00:43:28,673 --> 00:43:30,707
so I would go
'round and get them
775
00:43:30,709 --> 00:43:32,775
to sign stuff in
their own house,
776
00:43:32,777 --> 00:43:35,445
say, "Oh,
while you're sitting there,
777
00:43:35,447 --> 00:43:38,081
watching the telly,
do us a favor.
778
00:43:38,083 --> 00:43:40,383
Can you just
sign that bagful?"
779
00:43:43,587 --> 00:43:46,489
So, if some of the fans,
especially in the foreign countries,
780
00:43:46,491 --> 00:43:48,458
they didn't have the address
of the fan club,
781
00:43:48,460 --> 00:43:50,994
so they just knew that they lived
in England somewhere,
782
00:43:50,996 --> 00:43:54,497
so they would just
put 'To Paul McCartney'
783
00:43:54,499 --> 00:43:58,001
or 'To George Harrison,
England,'
784
00:43:58,003 --> 00:44:00,403
but it would come
through the system.
785
00:44:00,405 --> 00:44:03,206
The post office, give them their due,
were very good,
786
00:44:03,208 --> 00:44:07,043
they just knew where
the fan club existed.
787
00:44:07,045 --> 00:44:13,883
?[music]
788
00:44:29,700 --> 00:44:31,968
The type of
questions kids would ask
789
00:44:31,970 --> 00:44:34,103
in the fan club
letters was, you know,
790
00:44:34,105 --> 00:44:36,239
'Can I have
a piece of Paul's shirt?'
791
00:44:36,241 --> 00:44:38,708
or 'If I send you a map,
can you ask
792
00:44:38,710 --> 00:44:41,077
Paul to come
'round at 6 o'clock?
793
00:44:41,079 --> 00:44:44,047
Because I'm having a party
and I'd like him to come.'
794
00:44:48,352 --> 00:44:50,053
But then it got
a bit out of hand,
795
00:44:50,055 --> 00:44:51,654
because then
people wanted hair,
796
00:44:51,656 --> 00:44:54,524
and it was
the same barber that cut
797
00:44:54,526 --> 00:44:57,260
their hair,
it was always this one guy.
798
00:44:57,262 --> 00:45:01,064
I mean, it was their hair,
they'd probably do DNA on it now.
799
00:45:01,066 --> 00:45:03,833
He would have
a mat down on the floor
800
00:45:03,835 --> 00:45:06,536
or something,
and cut their hair...
801
00:45:06,538 --> 00:45:09,005
'cos he thought I was mental.
802
00:45:10,941 --> 00:45:14,644
And he'd just say "There you go,
do you want that bit?"
803
00:45:14,646 --> 00:45:16,979
I'd go "Yeah, yeah, thanks."
804
00:45:26,824 --> 00:45:28,858
Somebody sent a pillowcase in
805
00:45:28,860 --> 00:45:31,961
and said "Can you get Ritchie to
sleep on this pillowcase
806
00:45:31,963 --> 00:45:34,597
and then send it back to me
and get him to sign it?"
807
00:45:34,599 --> 00:45:36,899
I must have known that he was going to
be home for three days,
808
00:45:36,901 --> 00:45:40,136
so I just threw that in the bag
and took it to his house
809
00:45:40,138 --> 00:45:45,108
and said, "Will you sleep on that tonight
and sign it then?"
810
00:45:45,110 --> 00:45:48,144
And I remember saying to Elsie --
that was his mum --
811
00:45:48,146 --> 00:45:50,480
"Can you make sure
he sleeps on it?"
812
00:45:50,482 --> 00:45:53,249
Anyway, he brought it in,
just said "Here,"
813
00:45:53,251 --> 00:45:54,851
and then I just
sent it out again--
814
00:45:54,853 --> 00:45:57,320
whether she believed me or not
that he'd slept on it, but he did,
815
00:45:57,322 --> 00:45:59,422
he put his head
on that pillow.
816
00:46:02,526 --> 00:46:04,494
Honestly, if I could
do it, I would do it,
817
00:46:04,496 --> 00:46:08,164
'cos I was one of them,
I was a fan me self,
818
00:46:08,166 --> 00:46:10,333
so I knew where
they were coming from.
819
00:46:15,005 --> 00:46:16,973
There was one particular fan
820
00:46:16,975 --> 00:46:20,443
that stowed away on a ship
from America to Liverpool docks,
821
00:46:20,445 --> 00:46:22,745
finished up on our doorstep.
822
00:46:22,747 --> 00:46:25,715
Freda had many episodes
like that to deal with,
823
00:46:25,717 --> 00:46:28,718
of fans that were just crazy.
824
00:46:28,720 --> 00:46:32,955
?[music]
825
00:46:35,192 --> 00:46:38,027
They would just open the mail
and flip through the mail,
826
00:46:38,029 --> 00:46:40,163
and go "Oh, this kid
wants such and such,"
827
00:46:40,165 --> 00:46:42,632
or "This girl wants
a piece of my shirt,"
828
00:46:42,634 --> 00:46:44,901
they'd just laugh, and I said,
"Oh, just leave it there,
829
00:46:44,903 --> 00:46:48,638
'cos I've got a bit of your shirt,"
and they'd go "Good."
830
00:46:55,813 --> 00:46:59,482
When I typed the wages,
the balance went in the bank Fordham,
831
00:46:59,484 --> 00:47:03,252
and they all got
50 pound in an envelope, cash,
832
00:47:03,254 --> 00:47:06,656
for them to play around with
whatever way they wanted.
833
00:47:07,891 --> 00:47:10,726
Now, I used to take
that money sometimes:
834
00:47:10,728 --> 00:47:13,863
if they didn't come in that week,
Eppy'd just say to me,
835
00:47:13,865 --> 00:47:15,745
"Now you go to one
of the bookings."
836
00:47:18,268 --> 00:47:20,203
I knew they were
playing at The Empire
837
00:47:20,205 --> 00:47:23,072
and I was trying to
get through the crowd,
838
00:47:23,074 --> 00:47:26,409
and in those days,
policemen were always big,
839
00:47:26,411 --> 00:47:28,544
and this guy was a big guy
and he was on a horse
840
00:47:28,546 --> 00:47:30,913
and I was trying to wriggle
through the crowd,
841
00:47:30,915 --> 00:47:34,684
and I just said to him,
"I need to get into The Empire."
842
00:47:36,920 --> 00:47:38,554
He just blanked me.
843
00:47:38,556 --> 00:47:40,823
And I said "No,
no, I work for them,
844
00:47:40,825 --> 00:47:42,992
honestly,
I've got their wages,
845
00:47:42,994 --> 00:47:44,794
I need to get
into The Empire."
846
00:47:44,796 --> 00:47:48,030
And he went, "You and
thousands of others. Hop it."
847
00:48:06,850 --> 00:48:10,453
Which one is this? Oh,
it's a Beatle one.
848
00:48:10,455 --> 00:48:14,056
My mum is the most private person
I've ever met in my life.
849
00:48:14,058 --> 00:48:17,026
She would never sit down
and put dinner on the table
850
00:48:17,028 --> 00:48:18,494
and discuss just
idle chitter-chatter
851
00:48:18,496 --> 00:48:19,929
about what's gone
on with The Beatles
852
00:48:19,931 --> 00:48:22,431
in the past,
or anything like that.
853
00:48:22,433 --> 00:48:24,066
That's just not her nature.
854
00:48:25,903 --> 00:48:28,571
You know,
Freda, unless you knew her,
855
00:48:28,573 --> 00:48:31,340
you would never
know what she's done,
856
00:48:31,342 --> 00:48:33,509
'cos she never
tells anybody at all.
857
00:48:33,511 --> 00:48:35,478
We did a gig the other month
in New Brighton
858
00:48:35,480 --> 00:48:37,480
and Freda was in the audience.
859
00:48:37,482 --> 00:48:40,349
I saw her come in, and I was
on the microphone,
860
00:48:40,351 --> 00:48:43,085
I said "I'd like to welcome Freda Kelly,
The Beatles' secretary,"
861
00:48:43,087 --> 00:48:45,154
and she just turned around
and walked straight out,
862
00:48:45,156 --> 00:48:47,957
so nobody knew who she was,
they're all looking 'round
863
00:48:47,959 --> 00:48:49,725
but she wasn't there;
she'd walked out.
864
00:48:49,727 --> 00:48:51,627
A lot of people
in my mother's life
865
00:48:51,629 --> 00:48:53,496
don't even know
her previous life,
866
00:48:53,498 --> 00:48:57,066
so to speak, i.e. her job,
and she's always kept it like that.
867
00:48:57,068 --> 00:49:00,403
It was a time of her life,
and things changed,
868
00:49:00,405 --> 00:49:02,772
and then she became a mother
so things moved on,
869
00:49:02,774 --> 00:49:05,241
so if they do happen
to find out, they are
870
00:49:05,243 --> 00:49:07,677
rather surprised,
to say the least.
871
00:49:09,279 --> 00:49:11,280
You know, some
things are very personal,
872
00:49:11,282 --> 00:49:16,719
and I do respect the word privacy.
I like my own privacy,
873
00:49:16,721 --> 00:49:19,155
and I think even The Beatles,
they're
874
00:49:19,157 --> 00:49:21,524
entitled to
part of their lives
875
00:49:21,526 --> 00:49:24,493
that really people
shouldn't invade.
876
00:49:26,530 --> 00:49:30,933
?[acoustic guitar
and birds chirping] ?
877
00:49:33,103 --> 00:49:36,572
Ritchie started going out
with a girl called Mo Cox
878
00:49:36,574 --> 00:49:39,508
who was from Liverpool,
she was a hairdresser,
879
00:49:39,510 --> 00:49:42,845
and we just got on
very well together, Mo and I.
880
00:49:42,847 --> 00:49:45,314
I think it was
because she was just
881
00:49:45,316 --> 00:49:47,683
an ordinary girl
from Liverpool.
882
00:49:48,552 --> 00:49:51,654
Mo and Ritchie
got married in '65,
883
00:49:51,656 --> 00:49:55,624
and then she had Zak
in the September, I think.
884
00:49:55,626 --> 00:49:57,927
I happened to be in London
the day he was born,
885
00:49:57,929 --> 00:50:02,098
and I was in the office,
and Ritchie called into the office,
886
00:50:02,100 --> 00:50:04,300
and he said,
"I'm going to see Mo now,
887
00:50:04,302 --> 00:50:06,402
and Zak.
Do you wanna come with me?"
888
00:50:06,404 --> 00:50:08,204
and I went "Oh yeah, yeah,"
889
00:50:08,206 --> 00:50:10,740
So I think I was
the second person
890
00:50:10,742 --> 00:50:13,209
to see Zak,
soon after he was born.
891
00:50:18,081 --> 00:50:21,517
John's girlfriend
-- well, she was
892
00:50:21,519 --> 00:50:24,887
his wife when I got
to know Cynthia --
893
00:50:24,889 --> 00:50:28,424
she was out of the picture,
she was very low key.
894
00:50:28,426 --> 00:50:30,359
We were told -- but
that we weren't to say
895
00:50:30,361 --> 00:50:32,361
anything -- that
John was married.
896
00:50:32,363 --> 00:50:35,297
Brian Epstein was sitting on it
for as long as he could.
897
00:50:35,299 --> 00:50:37,967
I even had a friend
that was going out with John,
898
00:50:37,969 --> 00:50:42,471
and she would go to bookings
and he would take her home,
899
00:50:42,473 --> 00:50:46,709
but I couldn't tell her that,
"Oh please, end this now.
900
00:50:46,711 --> 00:50:48,944
It's not gonna go anywhere."
901
00:50:52,682 --> 00:50:57,353
You really want to say something.
You're dying to say something,
902
00:50:57,355 --> 00:51:00,489
because it is your friend,
903
00:51:00,491 --> 00:51:04,860
but you work for a company
904
00:51:04,862 --> 00:51:09,999
that have asked you
not to say things,
905
00:51:10,001 --> 00:51:13,669
so you have given your word.
906
00:51:13,671 --> 00:51:19,675
Freda had this
Liverpool trait of loyalty
907
00:51:19,677 --> 00:51:24,380
in her love life
and other people's love lives.
908
00:51:24,382 --> 00:51:26,882
Relationships
were amongst the top
909
00:51:26,884 --> 00:51:29,318
priorities of
being personal things
910
00:51:29,320 --> 00:51:31,454
that you did not publicize.
911
00:51:31,456 --> 00:51:33,823
You certainly did
not kiss and tell.
912
00:51:36,193 --> 00:51:39,795
I was out with Paul,
walking somewhere,
913
00:51:39,797 --> 00:51:46,635
maybe he gave me a lift home
or he walked me to the bus stop,
914
00:51:46,637 --> 00:51:51,140
somebody saw us,
and then it was, you know, I was marrying Paul,
915
00:51:51,142 --> 00:51:54,210
and then they got a quote
916
00:51:54,212 --> 00:51:57,279
"Well, Paul McCartney
is not marrying Freda Kelly."
917
00:52:00,584 --> 00:52:03,819
When it was released
that Paul had got married,
918
00:52:03,821 --> 00:52:06,455
because people didn't know
that he was getting married,
919
00:52:06,457 --> 00:52:11,961
phone call after phone call
was all Paul fans, crying down the phone,
920
00:52:11,963 --> 00:52:13,863
"Why didn't you tell us
he was getting married?"
921
00:52:13,865 --> 00:52:15,498
"We didn't know
he was getting married!"
922
00:52:15,500 --> 00:52:18,000
and, oh, some of them
that wanted to kill themselves,
923
00:52:18,002 --> 00:52:20,136
and "Oh, I'll never be
a Paul McCartney fan again!
924
00:52:20,138 --> 00:52:22,304
He's gone and
married somebody else!"
925
00:52:22,306 --> 00:52:24,473
so you just had
to calm them down
926
00:52:24,475 --> 00:52:28,277
and say, "Well, you know,
he's still Paul McCartney,
927
00:52:28,279 --> 00:52:30,412
he'll still be
making his records,"
928
00:52:30,414 --> 00:52:32,248
and they'd be
"No no no, but he's
929
00:52:32,250 --> 00:52:34,170
got married now and
it's not the same."
930
00:52:37,320 --> 00:52:40,689
I do remember the guy
from one of the papers.
931
00:52:40,691 --> 00:52:43,759
He lived near me, you know,
he knew what my job was --
932
00:52:43,761 --> 00:52:45,728
that I was working
for The Beatles --
933
00:52:45,730 --> 00:52:49,298
and I remember him saying to me,
could I tell him anything?
934
00:52:49,300 --> 00:52:51,834
"Freda, you just
have to put an envelope
935
00:52:51,836 --> 00:52:54,303
through my door with
things written on it,
936
00:52:54,305 --> 00:52:57,339
and then there will be an envelope
through your door."
937
00:52:58,375 --> 00:53:03,712
This was just before
George got married,
938
00:53:03,714 --> 00:53:05,915
'cos I thought
"Well I ain't telling ya
939
00:53:05,917 --> 00:53:08,083
that George is
going to get married,"
940
00:53:08,085 --> 00:53:10,486
but I just looked at him,
941
00:53:10,488 --> 00:53:13,756
and then I just said,
"Oh no, I wouldn't do that."
942
00:53:14,724 --> 00:53:17,893
Everybody needs money,
and we all like money,
943
00:53:17,895 --> 00:53:20,696
or we'd like to
have more money
944
00:53:20,698 --> 00:53:23,465
than we have,
but not to that extent.
945
00:53:23,467 --> 00:53:27,536
I'm not prepared to sell me soul
to the devil for a few pounds.
946
00:53:27,538 --> 00:53:29,572
That's just me though,
isn't it? You know
947
00:53:29,574 --> 00:53:31,540
everybody
doesn't think like me.
948
00:53:31,542 --> 00:53:35,044
Maybe some people think
I'm silly or stupid or...
949
00:53:36,213 --> 00:53:39,381
She was a girl
and then a woman
950
00:53:39,383 --> 00:53:42,451
with absolute
integrity and faithfulness.
951
00:53:42,453 --> 00:53:47,489
So many otherpeople have,
over the years, told, I would say,
952
00:53:47,491 --> 00:53:51,260
dirt digging type stories,
and Freda never did do that
953
00:53:51,262 --> 00:53:52,861
and never would.
954
00:53:52,863 --> 00:53:58,434
In the beginning, you know,
I was just a fan and everything like that,
955
00:53:58,436 --> 00:54:01,904
but once I started working for them,
the loyalty set in.
956
00:54:01,906 --> 00:54:05,374
It wasn't there from day one,
'cos I'm just a seventeen-year-old,
957
00:54:05,376 --> 00:54:11,013
but then, as I'm maturing with them,
the loyalty is setting in,
958
00:54:11,015 --> 00:54:12,648
and you don't break loyalty.
959
00:54:12,650 --> 00:54:15,951
I think if you're loyal to something,
you should stay loyal.
960
00:54:15,953 --> 00:54:18,854
If she had to be tough,
she would certainly be tough;
961
00:54:18,856 --> 00:54:21,123
if she had to be sweet,
she was sweet anyway,
962
00:54:21,125 --> 00:54:25,694
and she was intent on
getting the facts right all the time,
963
00:54:25,696 --> 00:54:28,998
and lo and behold,
if you didn't get the facts right,
964
00:54:29,000 --> 00:54:31,000
you were in her bad books,
965
00:54:31,002 --> 00:54:34,036
and I wouldn't like to be
in Freda's bad books.
966
00:54:34,038 --> 00:54:37,072
I think that Freda's
motto in life
967
00:54:37,074 --> 00:54:40,209
was "I'll be nice to you,
but don't cross me.
968
00:54:40,211 --> 00:54:41,977
I'll not deal with you,
in fact, if you're
969
00:54:41,979 --> 00:54:43,739
trying to tell
lies about my boys."
970
00:54:44,147 --> 00:54:46,682
?[music]
971
00:54:47,817 --> 00:54:50,119
I was quite
nervous around Freda,
972
00:54:50,121 --> 00:54:53,822
'cos to me she
was like an idol.
973
00:54:53,824 --> 00:54:58,927
I was about 14, there was
three of us worked together,
974
00:54:58,929 --> 00:55:00,829
oh it was just
absolutely an amazing
975
00:55:00,831 --> 00:55:02,665
thing to do at the time,
you know,
976
00:55:02,667 --> 00:55:05,501
to think that one of The Beatles
could possibly walk in,
977
00:55:05,503 --> 00:55:08,437
it was just-- oh,
I just can't explain it
978
00:55:08,439 --> 00:55:11,273
now.
It was amazing at the time.
979
00:55:13,977 --> 00:55:16,412
[Freda] They would put photographs
in envelopes
980
00:55:16,414 --> 00:55:19,715
and they would
open certain letters,
981
00:55:19,717 --> 00:55:22,885
and then bring the letters in
for me to answer,
982
00:55:22,887 --> 00:55:25,220
and I would really
frank in the mail,
983
00:55:25,222 --> 00:55:28,223
and this particular day,
one of the envelopes
984
00:55:28,225 --> 00:55:30,759
that I put through
the franking machine
985
00:55:30,761 --> 00:55:33,295
was a bit bulky,
so I opened it,
986
00:55:33,297 --> 00:55:36,765
and when I opened it,
there was hair fell out,
987
00:55:36,767 --> 00:55:39,902
and the girls were
still in the office,
988
00:55:39,904 --> 00:55:42,938
and I just said,
"What's going on here?"
989
00:55:42,940 --> 00:55:45,240
She was absolutely livid.
990
00:55:45,242 --> 00:55:47,109
I mean,
being the innocent party,
991
00:55:47,111 --> 00:55:48,911
I didn't know
nothing about it,
992
00:55:48,913 --> 00:55:52,981
and then my friend Lorraine,
she owned up and said it was her.
993
00:55:52,983 --> 00:55:55,918
It materialized that she'd cut
her sister's hair
994
00:55:55,920 --> 00:56:01,056
and put her sister's
hair in the envelope
995
00:56:01,058 --> 00:56:03,292
and pretended it was
going to be Paul's,
996
00:56:03,294 --> 00:56:06,328
and I just said,
"Well, I just can't trust you after this."
997
00:56:06,330 --> 00:56:09,965
I still remember thinking,
"I've done nothing wrong,
998
00:56:09,967 --> 00:56:12,334
it wasn't my fault!"
999
00:56:18,608 --> 00:56:23,112
I just done a clean sweep,
didn't just sack the girl that done it,
1000
00:56:23,114 --> 00:56:28,050
I said, "That's it, sorry.
Can't trust you anymore."
1001
00:56:28,052 --> 00:56:30,152
That was the only
time I've been sacked.
1002
00:56:30,154 --> 00:56:33,722
Wouldn't wanna live that day again,
that's for sure.
1003
00:56:33,724 --> 00:56:36,625
It was horrible... awful day.
1004
00:56:36,627 --> 00:56:40,129
The thing about Freda
is that if she found out
1005
00:56:40,131 --> 00:56:43,699
that somebody was telling lies
about somebody,
1006
00:56:43,701 --> 00:56:47,636
it'd just be "Come here you,"
in front of everybody
1007
00:56:47,638 --> 00:56:50,572
and she would castigate them
right down the banks,
1008
00:56:50,574 --> 00:56:55,778
and so she's a bit judgmental,
if you like, but so? That's Freda.
1009
00:56:55,780 --> 00:56:59,081
The bottom line was,
I had to run a tight ship --
1010
00:56:59,083 --> 00:57:01,283
I had to answer to Apple
and to The Beatles,
1011
00:57:01,285 --> 00:57:03,552
and if anything went wrong,
it was my head
1012
00:57:03,554 --> 00:57:05,754
that went on
the chopping block,
1013
00:57:05,756 --> 00:57:07,189
nobody else's.
1014
00:57:14,330 --> 00:57:19,668
?[rock and roll]
1015
00:57:22,939 --> 00:57:31,580
It was August 1965,
and The Beatles were playing on The Empire,
1016
00:57:31,582 --> 00:57:35,451
and The Moody Blues were also
on the bill, with them.
1017
00:57:35,453 --> 00:57:38,153
I had popped in
to see the lads,
1018
00:57:38,155 --> 00:57:40,456
I just opened
the door slightly
1019
00:57:40,458 --> 00:57:43,425
and their band room
was just full of relations,
1020
00:57:43,427 --> 00:57:46,161
so I thought, "Oh,
I'm never going to get in here,"
1021
00:57:46,163 --> 00:57:49,932
so, I was involved
with one of The Moodys at the time,
1022
00:57:49,934 --> 00:57:53,035
so I went into their dressing room,
which was next door,
1023
00:57:53,037 --> 00:57:55,471
that was just them and they had
alcohol and drinks,
1024
00:57:55,473 --> 00:57:57,739
so I decided to
stay there for a drink,
1025
00:57:57,741 --> 00:58:00,609
but probably I stayed a bit longer
than I shoulda done,
1026
00:58:00,611 --> 00:58:03,979
and then I realized
that I had to get autographs signed
1027
00:58:03,981 --> 00:58:06,515
and photographs signed,
so anyway,
1028
00:58:06,517 --> 00:58:09,238
I came back, knocked on the door,
and I just walked in.
1029
00:58:10,887 --> 00:58:15,357
And as I walked in,
John said to me, "Where have you been?"
1030
00:58:15,359 --> 00:58:17,493
And I said,
"Oh, I've been next door,
1031
00:58:17,495 --> 00:58:19,561
I've been in
the Moodys' dressing room,"
1032
00:58:19,563 --> 00:58:22,331
and he went, "Whose fan club
secretary are you?"
1033
00:58:22,333 --> 00:58:23,899
and I went "What are
you talking about?"
1034
00:58:23,901 --> 00:58:25,367
I said, "I'm your
fan club secretary,"
1035
00:58:25,369 --> 00:58:27,069
and he went "Not anymore."
1036
00:58:27,071 --> 00:58:28,770
He said, "You might as well
go back to The Moodys
1037
00:58:28,772 --> 00:58:30,772
and be their fan
club secretary,"
1038
00:58:30,774 --> 00:58:34,543
and I said "What are you talking about?"
and he went "You're sacked."
1039
00:58:36,412 --> 00:58:38,247
And then I looked
at the other three,
1040
00:58:38,249 --> 00:58:40,249
so I said,
"Are you sacking me as well?"
1041
00:58:40,251 --> 00:58:42,384
and they went,
"No, we're not sacking you."
1042
00:58:42,386 --> 00:58:44,019
So I got on my
high horse then,
1043
00:58:44,021 --> 00:58:46,822
probably because of the drink,
and I looked at him and I said,
1044
00:58:46,824 --> 00:58:52,794
"Well, I'll just work for the other three;
I won't do your mail anymore."
1045
00:58:52,796 --> 00:58:55,764
He said "Oh, I was only joking,"
I went, "No you weren't,"
1046
00:58:55,766 --> 00:58:58,066
and he went "Oh, I'm begging you, come back!"
1047
00:58:58,068 --> 00:59:00,502
and I said, "Well, I'll tell you what,
get down on your two knees
1048
00:59:00,504 --> 00:59:03,405
and beg me to come back,
you dumped me."
1049
00:59:05,041 --> 00:59:07,309
He said, "If I get down
on one knee?"
1050
00:59:07,311 --> 00:59:09,578
and I said, "Go on then,
get down on one knee,"
1051
00:59:09,580 --> 00:59:12,881
and he did, and I said, "Oh, all right,
I'll come back to you."
1052
00:59:26,362 --> 00:59:29,698
There has been quite a degree
of loss in her lifetime
1053
00:59:29,700 --> 00:59:31,466
which not many
people have gone through,
1054
00:59:31,468 --> 00:59:33,669
so, obviously, her mother dying
when she was very young,
1055
00:59:33,671 --> 00:59:38,507
my brother dying,
then my mum and dad getting divorced...
1056
00:59:38,509 --> 00:59:42,411
A lot of people have gone under
for less, and she hasn't.
1057
00:59:42,413 --> 00:59:48,383
She's a strong character,
and she's come out fighting every time.
1058
00:59:48,385 --> 00:59:52,087
Over a period of time, people have said
"Oh, why don't you do a book?"
1059
00:59:52,089 --> 00:59:53,722
or "You know,
you should do a book,"
1060
00:59:53,724 --> 00:59:56,825
and my son did ask me
-- Timothy did ask me --
1061
00:59:56,827 --> 00:59:59,795
to do a few things,
and I just--
1062
00:59:59,797 --> 01:00:04,399
it was because I never talked about
The Beatles, or my past,
1063
01:00:04,401 --> 01:00:06,501
and then something would
come on the television
1064
01:00:06,503 --> 01:00:11,306
and it would jog my memory,
and I would say, "Oh, I went to that,"
1065
01:00:11,308 --> 01:00:14,309
or, "Oh, I remember
the civic reception,"
1066
01:00:14,311 --> 01:00:16,678
or "I remember this,"
and Timothy used to say,
1067
01:00:16,680 --> 01:00:19,181
"But mum,
you never talk about it,"
1068
01:00:19,183 --> 01:00:22,618
and I said,
"Timothy, I haven't got time to talk about it.
1069
01:00:22,620 --> 01:00:24,853
I'm more
interested in going to shops
1070
01:00:24,855 --> 01:00:26,989
and thinking what
to put on the table
1071
01:00:26,991 --> 01:00:29,424
tonight for dinner,
not to sit down
1072
01:00:29,426 --> 01:00:31,860
and talk to you
about The Beatles."
1073
01:00:31,862 --> 01:00:37,432
And he just shook
it off, and then,
1074
01:00:37,434 --> 01:00:39,901
when my grandson
came along, I thought
1075
01:00:39,903 --> 01:00:42,337
"Well,
I didn't do it for Timothy,"
1076
01:00:42,339 --> 01:00:45,674
and then Timothy passed away
a few years ago,
1077
01:00:45,676 --> 01:00:48,176
and then when Nial came along,
1078
01:00:48,178 --> 01:00:51,713
I thought, "Well,
I'm definitely going to do it now."
1079
01:00:51,715 --> 01:00:55,617
Shh, I can hear
the birdies singing,
1080
01:00:55,619 --> 01:00:57,853
yeah,
can you hear them singing?
1081
01:00:57,855 --> 01:01:00,889
You know, because one of these days,
he might just look at me
1082
01:01:00,891 --> 01:01:02,958
in the corner with
the shawl and the grey
1083
01:01:02,960 --> 01:01:04,960
hair and a cat
sitting on me knee,
1084
01:01:04,962 --> 01:01:06,795
and probably think,
"Oh, you know,
1085
01:01:06,797 --> 01:01:08,563
she never done anything,
or..."
1086
01:01:08,565 --> 01:01:10,699
I would like him
to be proud of me
1087
01:01:10,701 --> 01:01:13,035
and see how
exciting my life was
1088
01:01:13,037 --> 01:01:15,270
in the '60s,
and the fun I had.
1089
01:01:15,272 --> 01:01:18,607
If I hadn't 'a done it now
-- and this is the truth --
1090
01:01:18,609 --> 01:01:21,643
If I hadn't 'a done it now,
I know I wouldn't ever have done it.
1091
01:01:25,181 --> 01:01:27,649
She could always say tomorrow,
tomorrow,
1092
01:01:27,651 --> 01:01:30,018
and she'll never sit
down and sort it out.
1093
01:01:30,020 --> 01:01:33,055
When Nial was born,
things definitely changed,
1094
01:01:33,057 --> 01:01:35,791
and I think that when anybody
has a child in that respect,
1095
01:01:35,793 --> 01:01:38,860
it does open a lot
of doors for people
1096
01:01:38,862 --> 01:01:42,097
and changes their position
in life in general,
1097
01:01:42,099 --> 01:01:45,867
and you can suddenly reinvent
yourself to a degree,
1098
01:01:45,869 --> 01:01:48,070
because Timothy
isn't around now,
1099
01:01:48,072 --> 01:01:50,572
and you don't know
what tomorrow brings.
1100
01:01:56,879 --> 01:01:59,281
When they came
back from America,
1101
01:01:59,283 --> 01:02:02,984
Brian Epstein decided then
that we had to move to London,
1102
01:02:02,986 --> 01:02:06,088
and you did, because in those days
everything happened in London,
1103
01:02:06,090 --> 01:02:09,024
wasn't happening up north.
1104
01:02:09,026 --> 01:02:11,526
We were planning on where
we were going to live
1105
01:02:11,528 --> 01:02:14,029
and what we were gonna do,
and what clubs we would visit,
1106
01:02:14,031 --> 01:02:17,999
and we were just --
all the excitement and the adrenaline
1107
01:02:18,001 --> 01:02:20,502
was, ooh, we're going to the big city,
the capital city.
1108
01:02:20,504 --> 01:02:23,638
So I went home and said,
"Oh, well, I'm going to London,
1109
01:02:23,640 --> 01:02:24,873
the fam's going to London,
and I'm going
1110
01:02:24,875 --> 01:02:26,041
to London with
the fam and everything,"
1111
01:02:26,043 --> 01:02:28,977
and I'm all bubbly,
and me father,
1112
01:02:28,979 --> 01:02:31,480
he just sat in the chair
and he was just listening,
1113
01:02:31,482 --> 01:02:37,352
and he said, "London is a city
of vice. You're not going."
1114
01:02:39,756 --> 01:02:43,859
I knew I could go, you know,
he couldn't stop me going,
1115
01:02:43,861 --> 01:02:47,462
but when I started
looking in me own mind,
1116
01:02:47,464 --> 01:02:51,099
he wasn't very
well at the time,
1117
01:02:51,101 --> 01:02:55,704
so that's when I thought
"No, I can't do this to me father.
1118
01:02:55,706 --> 01:02:59,875
A job's a job, even if it is
The Beatles, a job's a job."
1119
01:02:59,877 --> 01:03:03,111
And that's why I
handed in my notice.
1120
01:03:05,581 --> 01:03:09,584
He had a beautiful desk in the office,
really big desk,
1121
01:03:09,586 --> 01:03:11,887
he didn't even look
up when I walked in,
1122
01:03:11,889 --> 01:03:16,057
I just stood in front of him,
and I said, very quietly,
1123
01:03:16,059 --> 01:03:19,127
"I want to hand in
my notice please."
1124
01:03:19,129 --> 01:03:20,796
He'd never heard that before,
and he went,
1125
01:03:20,798 --> 01:03:22,397
"Don't you want
to come to London?"
1126
01:03:22,399 --> 01:03:24,666
I said, "Oh, I desperately
want to come to London,
1127
01:03:24,668 --> 01:03:27,002
I'd love to come to London,"
1128
01:03:27,004 --> 01:03:28,503
and I said,
"But I can't come to London,
1129
01:03:28,505 --> 01:03:29,905
'cos me father
won't allow me."
1130
01:03:29,907 --> 01:03:34,910
I know for a fact that Brian Epstein
was seriously concerned,
1131
01:03:34,912 --> 01:03:37,646
and I also know
that the individual Beatles
1132
01:03:37,648 --> 01:03:40,315
were most upset that
she wasn't coming to London.
1133
01:03:40,317 --> 01:03:42,083
And then Eppy sent for me.
1134
01:03:42,085 --> 01:03:44,186
He said, "I've had
a talk with the lads,
1135
01:03:44,188 --> 01:03:46,221
and we don't
want to you leave."
1136
01:03:46,223 --> 01:03:49,925
And I was just stunned.
1137
01:03:49,927 --> 01:03:52,861
He said, "I've had a word
with your father, and you can come
1138
01:03:52,863 --> 01:03:56,198
to London on a regular basis.
You stay up here."
1139
01:03:56,200 --> 01:03:58,500
And he said, "You can go back to NEMS,
let me see it done,
1140
01:03:58,502 --> 01:04:01,703
you can have my old offices
in White Chapel."
1141
01:04:01,705 --> 01:04:03,939
?[music]
1142
01:04:06,042 --> 01:04:09,144
And that was how
I didn't leave.
1143
01:04:09,146 --> 01:04:12,147
[She's the girl the Beatles
had to leave behind]
1144
01:04:15,751 --> 01:04:20,088
Before they moved to London,
I wanted to get their autographs,
1145
01:04:20,090 --> 01:04:23,225
so, George was in
this day, and I had
1146
01:04:23,227 --> 01:04:26,294
autograph book
upon autograph book
1147
01:04:26,296 --> 01:04:31,900
for him to sign,
and I slipped mine in the middle.
1148
01:04:31,902 --> 01:04:37,205
So he's signing them,
and I'm saying, you know, "That's to Rita,
1149
01:04:37,207 --> 01:04:42,577
that's to Barbara, that's to Steve,
and he gets to mine, and he said
1150
01:04:42,579 --> 01:04:45,914
"Who's this to?" and I said,
"Well, just sign that,"
1151
01:04:45,916 --> 01:04:47,749
'cos I just wanted
it out of the way,
1152
01:04:47,751 --> 01:04:50,485
and he went,
"Well, no, who's it to?"
1153
01:04:50,487 --> 01:04:52,988
and I think it was
because I was going,
1154
01:04:52,990 --> 01:04:55,390
"Oh, it doesn't matter,
just sign it,"
1155
01:04:55,392 --> 01:04:56,758
and I remember
saying to him, "Oh,
1156
01:04:56,760 --> 01:04:58,093
just sign the book,
just sign the book,"
1157
01:04:58,095 --> 01:05:02,130
and he flicked it to the front,
and he went, "Is this yours?"
1158
01:05:02,132 --> 01:05:05,467
and I went,
"Yeah, I haven't got your autograph,
1159
01:05:05,469 --> 01:05:07,802
I just want your autograph
before you go to London."
1160
01:05:07,804 --> 01:05:11,973
So he signed it, and he pocketed it,
he took it,
1161
01:05:11,975 --> 01:05:15,043
and I went,
"What are you doing with me book?"
1162
01:05:15,045 --> 01:05:18,146
and he went,
"I'll get the others for ya."
1163
01:05:18,148 --> 01:05:20,849
And then next time he came in,
he just threw it on the table,
1164
01:05:20,851 --> 01:05:24,386
he went, "There you go."
And they'd all put little comments in it.
1165
01:05:36,332 --> 01:05:38,967
Oh, Beatles Monthly.
1166
01:05:44,140 --> 01:05:46,241
Before the days
of the internet and
1167
01:05:46,243 --> 01:05:48,276
Twitter and
Facebook and everything,
1168
01:05:48,278 --> 01:05:50,178
the way we got
news to the fans
1169
01:05:50,180 --> 01:05:52,013
was through
the Beatles Monthlys.
1170
01:05:52,015 --> 01:05:55,083
I would get information
from their parents,
1171
01:05:55,085 --> 01:05:59,087
little gossipy snippets,
I would also ask them what was going on,
1172
01:05:59,089 --> 01:06:02,390
and little bits
of juicy information from them,
1173
01:06:02,392 --> 01:06:04,359
and I would put it
in my newsletter,
1174
01:06:04,361 --> 01:06:06,294
that was,
in The Beatles Monthly.
1175
01:06:10,967 --> 01:06:13,034
Dear Beatle People,
1176
01:06:13,036 --> 01:06:15,537
I'd really like to thank each
and every one of you
1177
01:06:15,539 --> 01:06:18,106
who have sent presents
for John's birthday.
1178
01:06:18,108 --> 01:06:22,043
John was really pleased that
so many of you remembered him.
1179
01:06:24,013 --> 01:06:27,148
During his 10-day
trip to America,
1180
01:06:27,150 --> 01:06:31,486
Paul looked in on a Beach Boys
recording session.
1181
01:06:31,488 --> 01:06:34,556
Tarrah for now, Freda Kelly.
1182
01:06:34,558 --> 01:06:38,660
?[rock and roll]
1183
01:06:38,662 --> 01:06:42,630
Dear Beatle People, July 1964
will go down in Beatle history
1184
01:06:43,165 --> 01:06:45,567
as a hard day's month.
1185
01:06:45,569 --> 01:06:48,970
At last the first feature film
starring our fabulous foursome
1186
01:06:48,972 --> 01:06:51,773
is ready for showing,
and will be coming
1187
01:06:51,775 --> 01:06:55,043
to your local
cinema quite soon.
1188
01:06:55,045 --> 01:06:59,414
At the beginning of March,
you will see, Beatles at Shea Stadium Show,
1189
01:06:59,416 --> 01:07:01,282
filmed in New
York last August,
1190
01:07:01,284 --> 01:07:05,186
when the boys starred in the
largest-ever concert of their career
1191
01:07:05,188 --> 01:07:08,723
before 57,000 fans.
1192
01:07:10,693 --> 01:07:14,329
Thank goodness
the rumors about Paul are over.
1193
01:07:14,331 --> 01:07:19,901
Paul is still with us,
and is likely to be with us for a long time.
1194
01:07:21,837 --> 01:07:24,205
Congratulations to
Ringo and Maureen,
1195
01:07:24,207 --> 01:07:26,641
who are expecting
their second baby
1196
01:07:26,643 --> 01:07:29,044
shortly after
Maureen's next birthday.
1197
01:07:30,913 --> 01:07:34,783
George has been to
the dentist again.
1198
01:07:34,785 --> 01:07:38,219
Dear Beatle People,
after nearly four months
1199
01:07:38,221 --> 01:07:40,855
of solid session work,
the new LP, called
1200
01:07:40,857 --> 01:07:43,425
Sergeant Pepper's
Lonely Hearts Club Band,
1201
01:07:43,427 --> 01:07:46,161
is ready.
1202
01:07:46,163 --> 01:07:50,198
Beatles are hoping to acquire
their own private recording studios
1203
01:07:50,200 --> 01:07:53,168
at a secret
location in central London.
1204
01:07:54,603 --> 01:07:57,439
New Beatles
recording every week.
1205
01:07:57,441 --> 01:07:59,407
In one short
period of just over
1206
01:07:59,409 --> 01:08:01,309
four months,
The Beatles have released
1207
01:08:01,311 --> 01:08:04,479
no less than
sixteen new recordings.
1208
01:08:04,481 --> 01:08:07,282
John hated his
passport photograph so much
1209
01:08:07,284 --> 01:08:12,253
that he tore it up
and had a new picture taken.
1210
01:08:14,056 --> 01:08:17,459
Dear Beatle People,
quite a lot of letters sent in
1211
01:08:17,461 --> 01:08:20,695
discussed John,
Cynthia, and Yoko Ono.
1212
01:08:20,697 --> 01:08:23,932
At least as many members have
written about Paul and Jane.
1213
01:08:23,934 --> 01:08:26,601
Everyone has dozens
of questions to ask,
1214
01:08:26,603 --> 01:08:28,970
and many of you
have only been too
1215
01:08:28,972 --> 01:08:31,239
ready to put
forward your opinions.
1216
01:08:31,241 --> 01:08:33,641
Here at the fan club,
we believe
1217
01:08:33,643 --> 01:08:37,412
that The Beatles deserve their
separate and individual private lives,
1218
01:08:37,414 --> 01:08:41,683
which should remain their business,
and no other people's.
1219
01:08:41,685 --> 01:08:43,885
I am sure both
John and Paul will
1220
01:08:43,887 --> 01:08:46,020
work out their
problems in their own ways,
1221
01:08:46,022 --> 01:08:48,490
and I think they should be
allowed to do so
1222
01:08:48,492 --> 01:08:52,160
without the help or hindrance
from millions of Beatle People.
1223
01:08:52,162 --> 01:08:54,896
Tarrah for now, Freda Kelly.
1224
01:08:59,869 --> 01:09:01,736
[thump]
1225
01:09:01,738 --> 01:09:06,007
?[acoustic guitar music]
1226
01:09:08,277 --> 01:09:10,378
Over the years,
we could see the effect
1227
01:09:10,380 --> 01:09:12,447
that his job was
having on Eppy.
1228
01:09:12,449 --> 01:09:14,282
It was taking its toll.
1229
01:09:14,284 --> 01:09:21,222
The odd time that I went to London
and saw him, he was just changing,
1230
01:09:21,224 --> 01:09:24,025
you know, you could just see
things weren't right.
1231
01:09:24,027 --> 01:09:27,896
He became obsessed
with trying out, initially,
1232
01:09:27,898 --> 01:09:31,499
experimenting
with drugs, and then
1233
01:09:31,501 --> 01:09:35,069
becoming very
reliant upon them,
1234
01:09:35,071 --> 01:09:38,306
and becoming more
and more of a mess.
1235
01:09:38,308 --> 01:09:42,243
The 27th of August,
1967, I was at home.
1236
01:09:42,245 --> 01:09:44,412
There was something
up with our phone,
1237
01:09:44,414 --> 01:09:46,414
and I know I had
to use a neighbor's phone,
1238
01:09:46,416 --> 01:09:48,349
and the neighbor
came over to me
1239
01:09:48,351 --> 01:09:50,218
and said,
"There's a call for you,
1240
01:09:50,220 --> 01:09:53,188
there's a girl, Pat,
wants to talk to you,"
1241
01:09:53,190 --> 01:09:55,223
and Pat said,
"Oh, have you heard about
1242
01:09:55,225 --> 01:09:57,158
Brian,
have you heard about Brian?
1243
01:09:57,160 --> 01:10:00,828
He's just been found dead."
1244
01:10:00,830 --> 01:10:04,933
The media were on this one
that he committed suicide,
1245
01:10:04,935 --> 01:10:09,337
and I just didn't believe
that he committed suicide.
1246
01:10:09,339 --> 01:10:12,440
Somebody said that he
choked on his vomit,
1247
01:10:12,442 --> 01:10:15,643
and I tend to
believe that tale.
1248
01:10:15,645 --> 01:10:18,413
The Beatles were
actually in Wales,
1249
01:10:18,415 --> 01:10:21,015
they'd gone there
to see the Maharishi,
1250
01:10:21,017 --> 01:10:23,685
and they were informed there,
1251
01:10:23,687 --> 01:10:27,355
and I just remember John,
out of all of them,
1252
01:10:27,357 --> 01:10:29,924
he was the one that
was sorta stunned.
1253
01:10:29,926 --> 01:10:37,065
Although I was still young me self,
I could still visualize
1254
01:10:37,067 --> 01:10:39,334
the devastation
that it was going to cause.
1255
01:10:40,269 --> 01:10:42,937
He was
the anchor for everything,
1256
01:10:42,939 --> 01:10:47,242
and it was just...
where do we all go from here?
1257
01:10:47,244 --> 01:10:49,177
What happens now?
1258
01:10:49,179 --> 01:10:54,282
So Paul had this meeting set
for September the 1st,
1259
01:10:54,284 --> 01:11:00,955
within a couple of days of Brian Epstein's
very tragic, premature death,
1260
01:11:00,957 --> 01:11:05,026
and when I got there,
nobody else had arrived yet,
1261
01:11:05,028 --> 01:11:09,130
and he said, "Before the others get here,
I just want to tell you,
1262
01:11:09,132 --> 01:11:15,603
I think that if The Beatles do not
get together and work together
1263
01:11:15,605 --> 01:11:18,125
very very quickly now,
the group is going to disintegrate."
1264
01:11:20,142 --> 01:11:23,945
?[music]
1265
01:11:25,581 --> 01:11:29,217
Magical Mystery tour,
it wasn't the best-organized thing,
1266
01:11:29,219 --> 01:11:32,287
well, it wasn't organized,
because Paul had a rough idea,
1267
01:11:32,289 --> 01:11:34,389
but just a very rough idea.
1268
01:11:36,992 --> 01:11:39,761
This coach rolled up,
and there was all
1269
01:11:39,763 --> 01:11:42,463
different types of
people milling around,
1270
01:11:42,465 --> 01:11:44,799
like a guy dressed up
as a bit of a clown,
1271
01:11:44,801 --> 01:11:47,502
and he had a spotty,
funny-type suit,
1272
01:11:47,504 --> 01:11:50,138
and I thought
"What's going on?"
1273
01:11:50,140 --> 01:11:54,976
and then this man -- I didn't know him,
I found out his name then,
1274
01:11:54,978 --> 01:11:58,046
it was called Ivor Cutler --
and he come over to me
1275
01:11:58,048 --> 01:12:01,316
and he just said to me,
"You've got a nice-shaped head."
1276
01:12:01,318 --> 01:12:05,053
We all eventually got on the bus,
and I dived for the back,
1277
01:12:05,055 --> 01:12:07,021
I thought, "Well, I'll go
on the back seat,
1278
01:12:07,023 --> 01:12:09,023
and, you know, you're not really
seen on the back seat,"
1279
01:12:09,025 --> 01:12:11,893
and then Paul
eventually got on the bus,
1280
01:12:11,895 --> 01:12:16,397
and he sat by the driver,
and then he called my name,
1281
01:12:16,399 --> 01:12:17,799
and he went,
"Freda, where are you?"
1282
01:12:17,801 --> 01:12:19,133
and I went,
"I'm here, I'm on the back,"
1283
01:12:19,135 --> 01:12:21,936
and he went,
"Can you come up the front?"
1284
01:12:21,938 --> 01:12:25,340
and I went, "Do I have to?"
and he went, "Come up the front."
1285
01:12:25,342 --> 01:12:28,710
I thought, "Well, he's getting severe here now,
do as you're told."
1286
01:12:34,116 --> 01:12:38,219
You couldn't book the hotels
in The Beatles' names
1287
01:12:38,221 --> 01:12:40,121
because they
wouldn't have you,
1288
01:12:40,123 --> 01:12:42,890
so you always had to book them
under false names,
1289
01:12:42,892 --> 01:12:46,361
and Neil was doing
some of the hotels,
1290
01:12:46,363 --> 01:12:50,732
and I said to him, "Why don't you book it
in the Women's Institute
1291
01:12:50,734 --> 01:12:53,935
or the Catholic Women's League
or something like that?"
1292
01:12:53,937 --> 01:12:55,903
and he went,
"Oh, that's a good idea,"
1293
01:12:55,905 --> 01:13:00,441
so I had to go up
to the counter in the hotel
1294
01:13:00,443 --> 01:13:02,777
and say, "Hello,
you've got a reservation
1295
01:13:02,779 --> 01:13:05,079
in the name of
the Women's Institute,"
1296
01:13:05,081 --> 01:13:08,182
and then they went, "Oh fine,"
I said, "Well, we're just come in now."
1297
01:13:11,954 --> 01:13:14,822
The shock on
people's faces when we all
1298
01:13:14,824 --> 01:13:17,592
trooped in --
because it was The Beatles,
1299
01:13:17,594 --> 01:13:20,895
it was people dressed weird --
it was a very mixed bunch,
1300
01:13:20,897 --> 01:13:23,464
very odd bunch,
and I was one of them.
1301
01:13:25,734 --> 01:13:30,238
But where, I think,
Paul was decided to do it there and then
1302
01:13:30,240 --> 01:13:32,974
was 'cos it was so quickly
after Brian Epstein's death.
1303
01:13:32,976 --> 01:13:37,245
He thought it might hold us all together,
or hold them all together,
1304
01:13:37,247 --> 01:13:40,248
but I don't think it worked.
1305
01:13:40,250 --> 01:13:42,583
That's just my opinion.
1306
01:13:47,890 --> 01:13:50,191
You know, you don't wanna
think about that,
1307
01:13:50,193 --> 01:13:51,359
you can be big-headed,
and say,
1308
01:13:51,361 --> 01:13:52,493
"Yeah,
we're gonna last ten years,"
1309
01:13:52,495 --> 01:13:54,562
but as soon as you've
said that, you think
1310
01:13:54,564 --> 01:13:56,597
"We're lucky if we
last three months."
1311
01:13:56,599 --> 01:14:00,134
Well obviously, we can't keep playing
the same sort of music
1312
01:14:00,136 --> 01:14:02,570
until we're about 40.
When I as at 40, we
1313
01:14:02,572 --> 01:14:04,939
may not know how to
write songs anymore.
1314
01:14:04,941 --> 01:14:08,943
I hope to have enough money
to go into a business of my own
1315
01:14:08,945 --> 01:14:14,348
by the time we do flop.
1316
01:14:14,350 --> 01:14:17,452
I've always fancied having
a ladies' hairdresser.
1317
01:14:17,454 --> 01:14:22,957
I string them, in fact, and strut 'round
in me stripes and me tails,
1318
01:14:22,959 --> 01:14:24,959
you know,
"Like a cup of tea, madam?"
1319
01:14:26,795 --> 01:14:31,132
The Beatles stopped touring in
roughly 1966, I think,
1320
01:14:31,134 --> 01:14:34,035
then Brian
Epstein died in '67, and
1321
01:14:34,037 --> 01:14:36,838
Magical Mystery
Tour was in '67,
1322
01:14:36,840 --> 01:14:39,407
and Apple had started by then.
1323
01:14:40,576 --> 01:14:44,178
In the beginning,
when Apple first opened,
1324
01:14:44,180 --> 01:14:47,348
it was great:
the fun and the madness
1325
01:14:47,350 --> 01:14:50,885
and all different nationalities
in the press office.
1326
01:14:50,887 --> 01:14:53,120
People didn't
act as if they were
1327
01:14:53,122 --> 01:14:55,289
working in
an office or a business,
1328
01:14:55,291 --> 01:15:02,930
and then it became more settled down,
more normal,
1329
01:15:02,932 --> 01:15:05,967
and there wasn't as much fun.
1330
01:15:05,969 --> 01:15:08,269
I loved
the beginning part of it,
1331
01:15:08,271 --> 01:15:10,505
'cos it was fun
in the beginning,
1332
01:15:10,507 --> 01:15:13,875
and it was fun for them,
they enjoyed it so much.
1333
01:15:13,877 --> 01:15:18,246
Every group wants to be in the charts,
or wants a hit record, or...
1334
01:15:18,248 --> 01:15:22,216
Everything was exciting in the beginning:
they got a number one,
1335
01:15:22,218 --> 01:15:24,385
and then they
were asked to appear
1336
01:15:24,387 --> 01:15:26,487
on the Royal
Command Performance,
1337
01:15:26,489 --> 01:15:32,093
and they saw the queen,
and they were a hit in America,
1338
01:15:32,095 --> 01:15:36,130
and the civic reception,
and it was all these landmarks,
1339
01:15:36,132 --> 01:15:40,768
and... where does it stop?
1340
01:15:40,770 --> 01:15:43,905
You can't keep carrying on
like that, can you?
1341
01:15:45,240 --> 01:15:47,575
Towards the end of the '60s,
1342
01:15:47,577 --> 01:15:50,144
it wasn't what The Beatles were doing
as a group anymore,
1343
01:15:50,146 --> 01:15:52,013
it was what they
were doing individually.
1344
01:15:52,015 --> 01:15:55,983
I know Paul's was-- he was
bringing out his own LP,
1345
01:15:55,985 --> 01:15:58,653
John and Yoko were doing
the peace movement,
1346
01:15:58,655 --> 01:16:00,588
and George was
doing things, I think
1347
01:16:00,590 --> 01:16:02,456
with Clapton,
I can't remember,
1348
01:16:02,458 --> 01:16:05,459
Ritchie had two sons by then,
1349
01:16:05,461 --> 01:16:08,195
and he was more interested
in, sort of, a family life.
1350
01:16:08,197 --> 01:16:11,899
And then the penny was
dropping with me,
1351
01:16:11,901 --> 01:16:16,537
that we aren't gonna be Beatles
as a group anymore.
1352
01:16:16,539 --> 01:16:19,941
Are you still the Beatles' fan club secretary?
How's business?
1353
01:16:19,943 --> 01:16:22,076
Fine, except for the post day.
1354
01:16:22,078 --> 01:16:23,811
They don't have
a group anymore.
1355
01:16:23,813 --> 01:16:25,646
Well they've still got four members,
haven't they?
1356
01:16:25,648 --> 01:16:29,450
I don't like to lie,
but it was trying to bend the truth,
1357
01:16:29,452 --> 01:16:33,354
when people were asking you questions
about what was going on,
1358
01:16:33,356 --> 01:16:35,323
you had to more or
less say, "Well yes,
1359
01:16:35,325 --> 01:16:37,224
The Beatles are
still together,
1360
01:16:37,226 --> 01:16:40,294
and everything's great,"
but it wasn't great.
1361
01:16:40,296 --> 01:16:42,763
And now,
what's the arrangement today?
1362
01:16:42,765 --> 01:16:46,167
Well last August,
Paul rang me up
1363
01:16:46,169 --> 01:16:50,438
and said he didn't want people
to be writing about him as a Beatle,
1364
01:16:50,440 --> 01:16:55,910
which I was doing, and he wanted to split
this word, Beatles, up.
1365
01:16:55,912 --> 01:17:00,114
They are four individual people now,
recording and everything,
1366
01:17:00,116 --> 01:17:02,483
and we'll write all
about Apple artists,
1367
01:17:02,485 --> 01:17:05,286
so we're still writing about
the four Beatles
1368
01:17:05,288 --> 01:17:07,488
'cos Paul is
still an Apple artist.
1369
01:17:07,490 --> 01:17:10,024
Is the atmosphere today
anything like it was ten years ago?
1370
01:17:10,026 --> 01:17:11,325
No, no.
1371
01:17:11,327 --> 01:17:12,593
What's missing?
1372
01:17:12,595 --> 01:17:14,028
The closeness.
1373
01:17:14,030 --> 01:17:17,365
It was all fun when we were teenagers,
but your life changes,
1374
01:17:17,367 --> 01:17:21,302
and my life had changed,
I was then 27, I mean,
1375
01:17:21,304 --> 01:17:23,504
I was married now,
had a baby son,
1376
01:17:23,506 --> 01:17:26,340
and I wanted more children,
1377
01:17:26,342 --> 01:17:29,477
and I was, we'll say,
concentrating on that.
1378
01:17:29,479 --> 01:17:32,380
I then found out
I was pregnant.
1379
01:17:32,382 --> 01:17:35,082
I'd been trying
to get pregnant for a while;
1380
01:17:35,084 --> 01:17:37,485
I desperately
wanted this baby,
1381
01:17:37,487 --> 01:17:43,190
and I just wanted to make sure
that everything was gonna be all right,
1382
01:17:43,192 --> 01:17:45,760
so that was more important
to me than my job,
1383
01:17:45,762 --> 01:17:52,033
was my married life, my son,
and the baby on the way,
1384
01:17:52,035 --> 01:17:57,071
and then that's when I thought,
"Well, I'm out here."
1385
01:17:57,073 --> 01:18:01,676
?[music]
1386
01:18:01,678 --> 01:18:04,445
I went to London,
had a discussion
1387
01:18:04,447 --> 01:18:07,114
with Neil Aspinall,
the head of Apple,
1388
01:18:07,116 --> 01:18:09,884
who was their road manager
in the beginning,
1389
01:18:09,886 --> 01:18:12,386
and George and
Ritchie were there;
1390
01:18:12,388 --> 01:18:16,390
it was just-- that was all,
I remember we were 'round a table.
1391
01:18:16,392 --> 01:18:19,260
I told them that I was pregnant,
and they said,
1392
01:18:19,262 --> 01:18:21,896
"Well, do you think you would
be going back to work?"
1393
01:18:21,898 --> 01:18:23,898
and I said, "I won't be
going back to work,
1394
01:18:23,900 --> 01:18:25,900
you know,
I'll have two children then."
1395
01:18:25,902 --> 01:18:29,203
And then George
finally spoke up
1396
01:18:29,205 --> 01:18:32,440
and said,
"Freda, you were there in the beginning,
1397
01:18:32,442 --> 01:18:35,609
you're there at the end,
let's call it a day.
1398
01:18:35,611 --> 01:18:38,846
Let's end the fan club."
1399
01:18:40,015 --> 01:18:42,783
You're still
involved in the fan club?
1400
01:18:42,785 --> 01:18:45,720
Well, I'm sorta
trying to wind it up.
1401
01:18:45,722 --> 01:18:49,523
This is what I wrote:
1402
01:18:49,525 --> 01:18:52,927
"Well, this is it.
John, Paul, George,
1403
01:18:52,929 --> 01:18:55,896
and Ringo have each
gone their separate ways,
1404
01:18:55,898 --> 01:18:58,599
and they are no
longer collectively
1405
01:18:58,601 --> 01:19:01,235
an item.
There it is. Eleven years.
1406
01:19:01,237 --> 01:19:04,939
Eleven years in which
we have become a very strong,
1407
01:19:04,941 --> 01:19:06,941
happy,
and close circle of friends.
1408
01:19:06,943 --> 01:19:10,344
There will not be
another official fan club
1409
01:19:10,346 --> 01:19:12,646
for The Beatles as
individual artists.
1410
01:19:12,648 --> 01:19:15,382
Please do not write again.
1411
01:19:15,384 --> 01:19:18,185
Yours faithfully,
Freda Kelly."
1412
01:19:18,187 --> 01:19:21,889
I haven't read that
since it went out.
1413
01:19:21,891 --> 01:19:26,060
I actually felt
quite sad, reading it.
1414
01:19:26,062 --> 01:19:29,563
With me being
a Beatle fan myself,
1415
01:19:29,565 --> 01:19:33,000
I just knew that
this is going to
1416
01:19:33,002 --> 01:19:36,537
break a lot of
girls' hearts, so I musta
1417
01:19:36,539 --> 01:19:40,007
put a lot of
lights out for people.
1418
01:19:41,777 --> 01:19:43,697
Well, the lights
went out, didn't they?
1419
01:19:59,895 --> 01:20:02,630
At the back of
all this, I am still
1420
01:20:02,632 --> 01:20:05,299
-- or was -- am
still a Beatle fan,
1421
01:20:05,301 --> 01:20:09,937
so I do think
the way they think.
1422
01:20:09,939 --> 01:20:13,073
We were still getting
a lot of letters every day.
1423
01:20:13,075 --> 01:20:17,111
I took them all home with me,
'cos I couldn't leave them in the office,
1424
01:20:17,113 --> 01:20:19,180
and although I said I
wouldn't write again
1425
01:20:19,182 --> 01:20:21,015
and I wouldn't
answer any letters,
1426
01:20:21,017 --> 01:20:23,851
between running
my home and doing
1427
01:20:23,853 --> 01:20:26,654
the normal
things a mother does,
1428
01:20:26,656 --> 01:20:29,623
I did answer the letters.
Slowly.
1429
01:20:29,625 --> 01:20:31,292
You know,
I'd maybe do three one night,
1430
01:20:31,294 --> 01:20:32,960
I might do none
the next night,
1431
01:20:32,962 --> 01:20:34,862
I might do five
on the Saturday.
1432
01:20:34,864 --> 01:20:36,697
But it took me,
on average, about
1433
01:20:36,699 --> 01:20:38,432
three years to
answer all those letters.
1434
01:20:39,601 --> 01:20:44,338
?[acoustic guitar solo]
1435
01:20:44,340 --> 01:20:49,076
Once I ended
the fan club, that was it.
1436
01:20:49,078 --> 01:20:51,378
I was then not
Freda Kelly anymore,
1437
01:20:51,380 --> 01:20:56,016
and I just lived a normal life
like everybody else,
1438
01:20:56,018 --> 01:20:58,953
nothing to do with
The Beatles anymore.
1439
01:21:01,723 --> 01:21:09,196
When I look back,
it is shocking how many people that have gone
1440
01:21:09,198 --> 01:21:11,298
that I knew from those days.
1441
01:21:11,300 --> 01:21:14,501
Well,
we lost Eppy first of all.
1442
01:21:14,503 --> 01:21:19,006
You've got the main two--
you've got John and George,
1443
01:21:19,008 --> 01:21:24,612
you've got two wives--
Mo Cox, Linda McCartney,
1444
01:21:24,614 --> 01:21:29,984
you've got all the parents,
you've got Neil Aspinall,
1445
01:21:29,986 --> 01:21:38,559
Derek Taylor,
my friend Laurie McCaffrey...
1446
01:21:38,561 --> 01:21:44,298
it brings it home to me.
1447
01:21:54,542 --> 01:22:01,582
I think fame and money
doesn't mean anything.
1448
01:22:03,952 --> 01:22:12,126
All the wealth
doesn't cure cancer, does it?
1449
01:22:13,929 --> 01:22:19,533
I worked with a lot of good people,
I did, I loved them.
1450
01:22:20,902 --> 01:22:26,540
?[music and singing]
1451
01:22:29,177 --> 01:22:34,915
Giving a job like that,
to what became the biggest band in the world,
1452
01:22:34,917 --> 01:22:40,087
to a girl of 17, that was
an unbelievable thing to do,
1453
01:22:40,089 --> 01:22:42,389
and she never let 'em down.
1454
01:22:49,631 --> 01:22:52,766
The tide washes
the sea in every day.
1455
01:22:52,768 --> 01:22:56,303
Freda was the tide
-- you saw the effects
1456
01:22:56,305 --> 01:22:59,173
of the tide like you see
the effects of Freda --
1457
01:22:59,175 --> 01:23:03,377
but you never actually see a tide as such,
it just happens to be there,
1458
01:23:03,379 --> 01:23:06,213
and Freda was,
so tell the story.
1459
01:23:13,288 --> 01:23:15,889
I don't know why
Eppy picked me.
1460
01:23:15,891 --> 01:23:18,525
Maybe it was just fate.
And I was taken along
1461
01:23:18,527 --> 01:23:21,495
for this ten-year,
exciting ride,
1462
01:23:21,497 --> 01:23:26,500
and then dropped off
on the corner where I started it.
1463
01:23:26,502 --> 01:23:30,204
You know, I'm not famous,
I'm not wealthy,
1464
01:23:30,206 --> 01:23:32,973
I'm still working for a living,
I'm still a Beatle fan,
1465
01:23:32,975 --> 01:23:39,179
so although there's a 50-year gap
since I started it,
1466
01:23:39,181 --> 01:23:45,019
I still like to think that I'm back where I was
in the beginning.
1467
01:23:49,424 --> 01:23:52,893
I don't ever have to
tell this tale again.
1468
01:23:52,895 --> 01:23:57,097
It's down now,
on record, isn't it?
1469
01:23:57,099 --> 01:23:58,999
End of.
1470
01:24:17,352 --> 01:24:18,786
Peace and love.
1471
01:24:18,788 --> 01:24:22,056
My name is Ringo,
and this is a message
1472
01:24:22,058 --> 01:24:25,192
to all of Freda
Kelly's grandchildren.
1473
01:24:25,194 --> 01:24:29,897
Freda was a great friend to The Beatles,
she was the fan club leader,
1474
01:24:29,899 --> 01:24:32,966
and we've known
her for a long time.
1475
01:24:32,968 --> 01:24:36,470
Anyway, we all loved Freda.
She was great,
1476
01:24:36,472 --> 01:24:40,707
and Freda was like part of the family,
and she knew all our families,
1477
01:24:40,709 --> 01:24:44,445
she was just one of the best.
Peace and love. Peace and love.
1478
01:24:45,700 --> 01:24:46,445
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