Arnotts will unveil a plaque later today marking the 55th anniversary of The Beatles’ one and only concert in Dublin.
On this day, November 7 1963, the Fab Four landed at Dublin Airport to mass hysteria ahead of a gig at Adelphi Cinema on Middle Abbey Street, a site now owned by Arnotts.
To mark the occasion, RTÉ has published a video of a news broadcast which aired on that day and it’s a fascinating watch.
From the moment the Liverpudlians land to be greeted by RTÉ presenters Paul Russell and Frank Hall to the hordes of screaming girls (and a few boys) looking to catch a glimpse of their idols, the clip serves as a nostalgic look at how Dubliners dealt with international celebrities in the pre-selfie era but also teaches us that not much has changed when it comes the emotional effects of seeing your heroes in the flesh.
Within the seven-minute long clip the interview with John, Paul, George and Ringo is notable for their astonishment amid all the chaos as well as their obvious friendship.
Ringo scolding John for forgetting his mac (the raincoat, not the Apple product) is a highlight as is seeing the all four of them spontaneously break into innocent play fighting.
Of course, the lads were promised a trip to the Guinness Brewery as is customary for any visitor to Dublin to this day.
Towards the end, the late Frank Hall interviews a host of women outside the venue and is utterly bemused at all the commotion. When questioned, some of the reasons offered for Beatlemania in the capital are the group’s hair, their jackets (awwww) and of course their singing.
However, one woman claims, in scathing Dublin fashion, that she doesn’t even like them and that she was only there to queue for tickets to see pop singer Helen Shapiro the following week.
The full clip is well worth seven minutes of your time and can be seen here.
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