Sunday 25 February 2018

Lennon's Banjo partners with Strawberry Fields project

 

 

 
 

LENNON’S BANJO CHARITY PARTNER
ANNOUNCED AS SALVATION ARMY
IN LEGACY TO BEATLE’S CHILDHOOD
 
Redevelopment of Strawberry Field, inspiration behind the iconic Beatles’ hit, will benefit from donations
The Salvation Army’s Strawberry Field project has been announced as the official charity partner for the highly anticipated new stage show Lennon’s Banjo, which makes its world premiere in Liverpool this April.
 
Produced by Pulse Records Ltd in association with Bill Elms, Lennon’s Banjo opens at the city’s Epstein Theatre on Tuesday 24 April, continuing through until Saturday 5 May. Tickets are on sale now.
 
The Beatles’ original drummer Pete Best, will play himself in three special performances.
 
Throughout the show’s two-week run, there will be a collection at the end of each performance with all monies being donated to The Salvation Army’s Strawberry Field project.
 
Demolition work has already started to redevelop Strawberry Field, with the final vision resulting in a training hub for young people with learning disabilities, alongside a visitor centre, cafe and public gardens.
 
Set in present day Liverpool, Lennon’s Banjo is based on the 2012 novel Julia’s Banjo written by Rob Fennah and Helen A Jones. A mix of fact and fiction, the production will be directed by Mark Heller.
 
The quest is on to find the holy grail of pop memorabilia – the missing banjo on which John Lennon was first taught to play music by his mother Julia Lennon, who first introduced the youngster to rock and roll.
 
Strawberry Field was A Salvation Army children’s home for the city’s vulnerable children, set in woodland and near to where John Lennon lived in Woolton. It also played a vital part in Lennon’s formative years – inspiring The Beatles’ 1967 smash hit single Strawberry Fields Forever.
 
Major Drew McCombe, Divisional Leader for The Salvation Army, North West, explained: “Everybody knows the song Strawberry Fields Forever – but few people know the story behind the song. John had a troubled childhood and for him, Strawberry Field was a place of peace, refuge and a quiet spot where he could climb trees and dream his dreams. He used to jump over the wall into the Strawberry Field grounds, where he would play with the children who lived there and listen to The Salvation Army band.
 
“Our public fundraising campaign has a target of £2million to ensure our vision becomes a reality. Strawberry Field has the potential to change the lives of young people with learning disabilities who find it difficult to find gainful employment. It is a social injustice that they do not have the opportunities that others have – and we want to change that.
 
“Our aim now is to weave together educational, cultural, heritage and spiritual exploration in one bold imaginative plan. Visitors will be able to go beyond the famous red gates for the very first time and enjoy the new authentic exhibition, have lunch in the restaurant and relax in the tranquil gardens. We are very grateful that we’ve been chosen as the official charity partner for Lennon’s Banjo, and we wish the show every success.”
 
Co-producer Bill Elms added: “We are delighted to be supporting the work of The Salvation Army and its inspiring Strawberry Field project. The play centres around John Lennon’s very first instrument, which played a vital role in shaping his musical talent. Equally, Strawberry Field played a huge role in developing John’s creativity and imagination, so we are thrilled that Lennon’s Banjo can give something back to something which meant so much to John.”
 
Lennon’s Banjo is written by Rob Fennah, who will also co-produce the show. No stranger to theatre, Fennah wrote the stage play adaptation of Helen Forrester’s Twopence to Cross the Mersey which has enjoyed success spanning 20 years.
 
An eight-strong cast features Eric Potts, Mark Moraghan, Jake Abraham, Lynn Francis, Danny O’Brien, Stephanie Dooley, Alan Stocks and Roy Carruthers.
 
The Beatles’ original drummer Pete Best will appear as himself in three performances. Pete will appear in the 2.30pm and 7.30pm shows on Wednesday 25 April, and the 7.30pm show on Saturday 5 May. Alan Stocks will portray Pete Best in all other performances during the two-week run.
 
Lennon’s Banjo’s are delighted to be working with its Fab Four Production Partners who are The Cavern Club Liverpool, The Beatles Story, Hard Days Night Hotel, and The Beatles Shop.
 
Watch the promo video here  https://youtu.be/ddpVnRStAmo   
For more info visit www.lennonsbanjo.com
 
LISTING INFORMATION

LENNON’S BANJO
Epstein Theatre Liverpool
Tuesday 24 April – Saturday 5 May 2018
Preview Performance 24th April – ALL SEATS £16
Group Rates Available
 
HOW TO BOOK

Tickets are on sale now. 
 
EPSTEIN THEATRE
ONLINE:          www.epsteinliverpool.co.uk
CALL:               0844 888 4411
IN PERSON:     Hanover Street, Liverpool, L1 3DZ | Mon-Thu 2pm-6pm, Fri & Sat 12pm-6pm

TICKETQUARTER
ONLINE:
         
www.ticketquarter.co.uk
CALL:               0844 8000 410
IN PERSON:     Echo Arena Box Office, Kings Dock, Liverpool, L3 4FP | 12noon on Echo Arena event days, and from 9am - 6pm on Fridays.

Sunday 18 February 2018

Monday 12 February 2018

George Harrison 75th birthday tribute - Tokyo Art Gallery

Club member Alan returned from his visit to Japan with news to share about an event about a George Harrison 75th birthday tribute event at a Tokyo Art Gallery.

The tribute runs from from February 17 to March 11.

The gallery is on the 8th floor of the Hikarie Building, a skyscraper near Shibuya station and is relatively easy to find.

Check out the website to get a good impression of what visitors can expect to see. If you use the Google Chrome browser to view the site, it gives you the option to have the site translated to English and it works very well. [Get Chrome]

Viewed in other browsers it will be in Japanese but the pictures on the website are very helpful for non-Japanese speakers.

The tickets are purchased for specific dates and time windows and the admission price is 1000 yen, which is roughly GBP 6.60 or USD 9.10

Thanks to Alan for discovering this event and if any BBFC members manage to attend, please send us a review.  We'd love to hear what it was like.

Friday 9 February 2018

Let It Be Returns!


LET IT BE RETURNS TO CELEBRATE
THE MUSIC OF THE BEATLES
 
·        NATIONAL UK TOUR OPENS SUMMER 2018
 
  • NEW TOUR WILL VISIT CARDIFF, CHELTENHAM, LIVERPOOL, NOTTINGHAM, HULL, EDINBURGH, DARTFORD, MANCHESTER
 
  • NEW SHOW FEATURES MORE THAN 40 OF THE BEATLES’ GREATEST HITS
 
  • BRAND NEW PART II IMAGINES THE BEATLES’ REUNION CONCERT THAT NEVER WAS
____________________________________________
 
Let It Be: A Celebration Of The Music Of The Beatles has firmly established itself as a successful West End and international touring show.
 
And now the smash-hit stage show has been updated and is back on tour, featuring a brand new Let It Be Part II – which has never been seen before in the UK.
 
Let It Be returns for a UK national tour this Summer and Autumn, before taking to the world stage once again.
 
The show is a celebration of the phenomenal music of The Beatles, and has already been seen by more than two million people worldwide, including an acclaimed run in the West End and two UK tours.
 
Let It Be is the ultimate experience for Beatles fans, and features many of the Fab Four’s best loved songs including A Hard Days Night, Day Tripper, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Twist and Shout, I Want To Hold Your Hand and Strawberry Fields Forever.
 
The team behind international hit stage show Let It Be, have come together once again to create a very special show for fans by incorporating a brand new Let It Be Part II into the show.
 
The updated Let It Be production will be premiered in the UK when it opens at Cardiff’s Wales Millennium Centre on 20 August 2018.
 
The show will then embark on a UK, European and international tour taking countries including Germany and North America.
 
Beatles fans are invited to join John, Paul, George and Ringo for a great night of live music. Enjoy the early beginnings at the word famous Cavern Club, through to the height of Beatlemania.
 
In a twist from the original Let It Be show, audiences will then be taken on a Magical Mystery Tour to experience the concert that never was.
 
Part II of Let It Be is the brand new part of the show, giving audiences the rare opportunity to see The Beatles reunite for one night only, set a decade after the group went their separate ways.
 
After opening in Cardiff, the updated Let It Be show will then visit Cheltenham, Liverpool, Nottingham, Hull, Edinburgh, Dartford, and Manchester.
 
WHAT THE CRITICS SAY ABOUT LET IT BE
 
The Beatles are back sending theatre audiences dancing into the aisles’
Reuters, New York
 
‘Winning over an Empire full of Liverpudlians (including John Lennon’s sister Julia) is no mean feat. But one that Let It Be happily achieves’
Liverpool Echo
 
‘Fab for all the family’
The Times of London
 
‘The gig that Liverpool never had is now the gig that Liverpool cannot do without’
Liverpool Sound and Vision
 
‘Does everything and more to recreate that magic era’
Manchester’s Finest
 
Website:         www.LetItBeLive.com
Facebook:       /LetItBeUKTour
Twitter:           @LetItBeUKTour
 
 
LET IT BE UK 2018 TOUR
 
CARDIFF
Wales Millennium Centre
Monday 20 August – Saturday 25 August 2018
029 2063 6464
ON SALE NOW
 
CHELTENHAM
Everyman
Tuesday 28 August – Saturday 1 September 2018
01242 572573
ON SALE NOW
 
LIVERPOOL
Empire Theatre
Monday 3 September – Saturday 8 September 2018
0844 871 3017
GENERAL SALE: MONDAY 29 JANUARY 2018
 
NOTTINGHAM
Royal Concert Hall
Monday 10 September – Saturday 15 September 2018
0115 989 5555
GENERAL SALE: FRIDAY 26 JANUARY 2018
 
HULL
New Theatre
Monday 24 September – Saturday 29 September 2018
01482 300306
ON SALE NOW
 
EDINBURGH
Playhouse Theatre
Monday 8 October – Saturday 13 October 2018
0844 871 3014
GENERAL SALE: MONDAY 29 JANUARY 2018
 
DARTFORD
Orchard Theatre
Monday 15 October – Saturday 20 October 2018
01322 220000
ON SALE NOW
 
MANCHESTER
Opera House
Monday 22 October – Saturday 27 October 2018
0844 871 3018
GENERAL SALE: MONDAY 29 JANUARY 2018

Wednesday 7 February 2018

Celebrate George's Birthday with the Trembling Wilburys

George Harrison's 75th Birthday Special - Sunday 25th February

Top tribute band the Trembling Wilburys are celebrating what would be George Harrison's 75th birthday on Sunday 25th February at rock venue Nambucca in Holloway Road, north London. 

Frontman Glen Knowler looks and sounds uncannily like the late Beatle & Traveling Wilburys co-founder Harrison, while the band also pays perfect homage to his Wilbury bandmates - Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne & Tom Petty. The band have been going for over six years mainly playing venues all over London & the South East, as well as venturing to other cities such as Birmingham, Mons (Belgium) and Liverpool where they played the legendary Cavern Club last October

Drummer and band founder David Stark commented, "We've played some amazing gigs over the past few years and the band generates an incredible energy which everyone seems to love. Apart from Glen we have Dave Collison as an impeccable Roy Orbison, Andy McNish doubling up as Bob Dylan and Tom Petty, and bassist Marko Laver doing the honours as Jeff Lynne. Meanwhile lead guitarist Dzal Martin always gets the cheers for his incredible solos, while keyboard player Howard Robin (aka Ludwig van Wilbury) completes the line-up. We're really looking forward to playing Nambucca for the first time, it's an excellent venue with a great bar and sound system."

2018 also marks the 30th anniversary of the Traveling Wilburys' debut album 'Volume One' featuring such hits as 'Handle With Care' and 'End Of The Line', and the band is hoping to perform this classic album in its entirety on the night subject to final rehearsals. Their 2-hour show also features a selection of solo hits by the individual Wilburys including Beatles & ELO songs like 'Taxman', 'Something', 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps', 'Hold On Tight' and 'Roll Over Beethoven'.

Doors open at 7pm with an 8.15pm start while tickets are £10 on the door or £8 in advance, available from www.wegottickets.com/event/429236

Venue: Nambucca
596 Holloway Road
London N7 6LB
For further information please contact:
David Stark (manager/drummer)
Tel: 020 7794 2540 / Mobile: 07956 270592

Monday 5 February 2018

Lennon's Banjo Cast complete - Pete Best to make guest appearances

THE SHOW MAKING HEADLINES AROUND THE WORLD ANNOUNCES EIGHT OF THE ‘BEST’
Lennon’s Banjo cast complete with original Beatles’ drummer Pete Best, who will also make guest appearances
 
 
Lennon’s Banjo makes its world stage premiere at Liverpool’s Epstein Theatre in April – and the show is already making headlines around the world as one of the most hotly anticipated productions of 2018.
 
The final cast member in a brand-new comedy stage play coming to Liverpool about the quest to find John Lennon’s missing childhood banjo has been revealed.
 
Liverpool stage actor Danny O’Brien completes the exciting line-up of Lennon’s Banjo. The cast also includes Eric Potts, Mark Moraghan, Jake Abraham, Lynn Francis, Stephanie Dooley, Alan Stocks, and Roy Carruthers.
 
Also, it was recently announced that The Beatles’ original drummer Pete Best, will play himself in three special performances of the show’s two-week run.
 
Produced by Pulse Records Ltd in association with Bill Elms, Lennon’s Banjo opens at the Epstein Theatre on Tuesday 24 April, continuing through until Saturday 5 May. Tickets are on sale now.
 
Lennon’s Banjo is written by Rob Fennah, who will also co-produce the show. No stranger to theatre, Fennah wrote the stage play adaptation of Helen Forrester’s Twopence to Cross the Mersey which has enjoyed success spanning 20 years.
 
It was John Lennon’s mother, Julia Lennon, who introduced him to the world of pop music, teaching him to play rock and roll on a banjo, given to her by John’s grandfather. The play is about a quest to find the holy grail of pop memorabilia – the first instrument John Lennon learned to play, which has been missing for 60 years and is now worth millions to whoever finds it.
 
Mysteriously, the banjo went missing shortly after Julia’s death. One thing is certain though, if it did resurface it is estimated to be worth in the region of five million pounds.
 
Set in present day Liverpool, Lennon’s Banjo is based on the 2012 novel Julia’s Banjo written by Rob Fennah and Helen A Jones. A mix of fact and fiction, the production will be directed by Mark Heller.
 
For the first time, the full plot and characters featured in the stage comedy can be revealed.
 
LENNON’S BANJO – THE PLOT
 
When Beatles tour guide Barry Seddon (Eric Potts) finds a letter written by John Lennon, he unearths a clue to solving the greatest mystery in pop history – the whereabouts of Lennon’s first musical instrument which has been missing for 60 years. But Barry’s loose tongue alerts Texan dealer Travis Lawson (Danny O’Brien) to the priceless relic.
 
In an attempt to get his hands on the letter and the clues, he persuades his wife Cheryl (Stephanie Dooley) to befriend the hapless tour guide and win his affections. The race for the holy grail of pop memorabilia is on!
 
LENNON’S BANJO – THE CHARACTERS
 
Coronation Street and Doctor Who’s Eric Potts will play tour guide and Beatle nerd Barry.
Barry lives for just one thing, The Beatles. His love for the Fab Four is all consuming and probably the main reason he has never had a girlfriend. Oblivious to ridicule by his workmate, Sid, and so-called friends, Joe and Steve, he has only one true admirer, Brenda.
 
Star of Coronation Street and Emmerdale, Mark Moraghan joins the cast to play the part of ‘Beatles Shop’ co-owner Joe. Joe is the older brother of Steve. Both ex dock-workers, Joe harbours a nagging sense of guilt for persuading Steve to go into partnership with him and buy The Beatles Shop. After 20 years in the shop, all his hopes and dreams of a better life have long since evaporated.
 
Liverpool's own Jake Abraham takes on the role of disgruntled 'Beatles Shop' co-owner Steve who, along with his brother Joe, has grown tired of his business tenure. Steve resents working in The Beatles Shop and misses the camaraderie of his old workmates. He feels his life is wasting away and craves for a more glamorous existence. Opening a bar in Tenerife is his ultimate goal.
 
Lynn Francis will play work-weary pub landlady Brenda. Brenda has clearly been through the mill. But underneath her dull appearance there still remains an attractive woman crying out for love. Unimpressed by loud-mouthed admirers like Sid, Brenda has her eyes set on a much gentler soul...Barry.
 
Danny O’Brien will be appearing in the role of Travis. Texan native Travis is not afraid to risk everything if it means making a fast buck.  But underneath the bullish bravado lurks a gentler character. Despite causing his wife no end of grief with all the wheeling and dealing, he desperately wants to be a winner and make her proud.
 
Stephanie Dooley has also joined the cast to play the part of Texan, Cheryl. Stephanie is best known for her roles in Emmerdale and Casualty.  Long suffering Cheryl does her best to stand by her husband Travis. She is the common sense in the marriage and tries to reign Travis in whenever she feels he's getting over ambitious. She rarely succeeds.
 
Appearing in the role of Sid is Alan Stocks. A throw back to 50's teddy-boy era, Sid fancies himself as a ladies' man but in reality women wouldn't touch him with a bargepole. Always on Barry's case, Sid sees the tour guide as an easy target and enjoys winding him up at every opportunity.
 
Roy Carruthers will play ruthless Texan businessman Tony DeVito. Tony DeVito oozes the confidence of a successful businessman. Never seen without a cigar hanging from his mouth, he is used to getting what he wants. DeVito's bravado is propped up by his hired muscle, Carl and Wayne.
 
Ex-Beatle Pete Best will appear as himself in three performances. Alan Stocks will portray Pete Best in all other performances during the two-week run.
 
Pete Best was The Beatles’ drummer between 1960 and 1962, playing more than 1,000 live performances including nightclubs and dance halls in both Liverpool and Hamburg. He recorded 27 songs as a Beatle, and he also played The Beatles’ very first show in Liverpool at the Casbah Coffee Club. Pete will appear in the 2.30pm and 7.30pm shows on Wednesday 25 April, and the 7.30pm show on Saturday 5 May.
 
Lennon’s Banjo’s are delighted to be working with its Fab Four Production Partners who are The Cavern Club Liverpool, The Beatles Story, Hard Days Night Hotel, and The Beatles Shop.
 
Watch the promo video here  https://youtu.be/ddpVnRStAmo   
For more info visit www.lennonsbanjo.com
 
LISTING INFORMATION

LENNON’S BANJO
Epstein Theatre Liverpool
Tuesday 24 April – Saturday 5 May 2018
Preview Performance 24th April – ALL SEATS £16
Group Rates Available
 
HOW TO BOOK

Tickets are on sale now. 
 
EPSTEIN THEATRE
ONLINE:          www.epsteinliverpool.co.uk
CALL:               0844 888 4411
IN PERSON:     Hanover Street, Liverpool, L1 3DZ | Mon-Thu 2pm-6pm, Fri & Sat 12pm-6pm

TICKETQUARTER
ONLINE:
         
www.ticketquarter.co.uk
CALL:               0844 8000 410
IN PERSON:     Echo Arena Box Office, Kings Dock, Liverpool, L3 4FP | 12noon on Echo Arena event days, and from 9am - 6pm on Fridays.