"Good Ol' Freda" -- Your chance to help!

Announcing the ‘Kickstart’ to a Long-Awaited Documentary for Beatles Fans Everywhere

Learn how you can help by clicking here to visit the kickstarter website

"Good Ol' Freda" is the untold story of Freda Kelly, the Beatles' trusted secretary and friend throughout their rise to fame…a genuine look into the life and times of the ultimate Beatles ‘insider.’



Freda Kelly lived the dream life of every Beatles fan. She was given a front row seat and got to know The Beatles when they first arrived onto The Cavern scene in Liverpool back in 1961 – even before they met their future manager, Brian Epstein. Freda was not only fortunate enough to be one of their earliest fans, but she also became very good friends with each of The Lads. In 1962, when Epstein started representing The Beatles, Freda was offered a job as his secretary and, as they say, the rest is history. She remained their loyal secretary throughout the entire ride.


The title “Good Ol’ Freda” comes from the famous line the Beatles shouted out on their 1963 Christmas record. The remark is in reference to Freda’s job of running The Official Beatles Fan Club, which under her management grew from just a hundred people in 1961 to over 70,000 worldwide by the end of The Beatles’ run.


The film is currently seeking funding, so the filmmakers are turning to Beatles fans to help them produce it. They are using Kickstarter.com, the largest ‘sponsor’ funded platform for creative projects in the world, as a way to involve Beatles fans worldwide in making the film a reality. Rewards given to donors on Kickstarter will range from DVDs of the documentary to signed pictures from Freda’s personal collection to Executive Producer credits on the film itself. By donating to the film, Beatles fans will have a chance to become a unique part of Beatles history.

A  fundraising goal of $50,000 must be met – Kickstarter is powered by a unique all-or-nothing funding method, where projects must be fully-funded or no money changes hands. In other words, if the filmmakers don’t raise the goal of $50,000, they lose everything. So please help spread the word! Contributions to “Good Ol’ Freda” can be made from October 3 to November 11, 2011. Easy to remember, 11-11-11!

Fans can donate and watch a video created specifically for them by clicking here 

Self-confessed "Beatles Fan and Freda Fan", Mark Naboshek fully supports the project.  He says:

"As you know, Freda Kelly worked for The Beatles for 10 years - from 1962 until 1972 - as their trusted confidante and fan club secretary. Since then, she has lived a quiet life, choosing not to exploit her Beatles connections despite repeated requests from fans to tell her story. Not even some of her closest friends and co-workers knew of her Beatles connection. She has always been a private individual and only this year decided to make her first-ever appearance as a guest at the Fest For Beatles Fans in New Jersey. 

She was overwhelmed by the response and has now had a change of heart, hoping to tell her story in the form of a filmed documentary. She's telling her story for the first time ever, partly because she wants her baby grandson to grow up knowing what his "granny" did in her youth. However, Freda needs the help of Beatles fans everywhere to make this project a reality.

You can make a donation to the film and get a reward in return (signed DVDs, photos of Freda with the Beatles, even lunch or a personal tour of Liverpool with Freda!) by clicking here

You can also watch the video (where Freda explains the project), read about the documentary and scroll down under "Back This Project" on the right-hand side to see how you can participate in and help make this documentary a reality. She has to reach the goal of $50,000 or more by November 11th or the project will not be funded. Freda is a working class woman - still employed as a secretary - so this fundraiser is necessary if the documentary is to happen.

As Beatles fan club secretary in the 1960s, Freda worked tirelessly to help out Beatles fans everywhere and make sure they were treated with respect.

It's payback time!

Donate $1 or $1,000 - whatever you can afford - and certainly spread the word to any Beatles fans whom you think would be interested in participating. Have them spread the word, too, and let's see if we can help Freda fund her documentary.

This isn't just for Freda. It's for us -- the fans!  After all, who knows Beatles fans better than Freda Kelly!

Thanks for your time -- check it out -- and spread the word!"

The Director of “Good Ol’ Freda” is Ryan White, the producer/director of Pelada, an award-winning documentary about a trip to 25 countries told through the lens of pick-up soccer. The film premiered at the prestigious SXSW Film Festival in 2010 and has played in over 20 film festivals worldwide. It’s been broadcast in as many countries and received rave reviews from Variety, The New York Times, and Sports Illustrated. Prior to Pelada, White had a longstanding collaboration with eight-time Emmy winner Sherry Jones.

The Director of Photography is Austin Hargrave, who shoots regularly for Sony Music and Scion A/V. Austin was staff photographer for the Daily Mirror for six years and won the very prestigious UK’s Photographer of the Year award two years in a row.

‘Good Ol’ Freda’ is scheduled for release in late 2012 or early 2013. This will be the first Beatles documentary of its kind.

For further information about this film or its Kickstarter program please contact Kathy McCabe at kmccabe44@comcast.net

All photos copyright Freda Kelly, and used with her kind permission. They should not be reproduced without the permission of the copyright holder.