2 mins into Peter Jackson‘s Beatles doc and I‘m once again thinking about how Beatlemania was very much a girl centric fandom and then within years they became the sort of band men would mansplain to you at 2 AM in kitchens at parties

The original design for Liverpool's Metropolitan Cathedral by Lutyens. Costs spiralled and only the crypt and treasury were built. A magnificent and recently promoted to Grade I listing cathedral designed by Gibberd was consecrated in 1967. liverpoolmetrocathedral.org.uk/visit-us/the...

A delightful (and rare) short film with #DavidTomlinson as ✉️ THE POSTMAN (1952) at 3:45pm bringing #Christmas greeting to a host of stars including #JackWarner #PhyllisCalvert and #DirkBogarde

BBC2 has a seasonal sense of humour, showing The Great Escape at 445 today, then The Great Escaper at 930. The latter, written by my pal Billy Ivory, is a lovely, heart warming 90 minutes, with the final film performances of both Glenda Jackson and Michael Caine. Recommended.

💪💥

Who knew?

Last minute gift for the Beatles fan in your life? 🎁 A number of events in support of Samira Ahmed's BFI A Hard Day's Night volume (published in April) are already on sale. Merry Christmas! 🎄

Coming in January! Premiere series! Sun-25-Jan 3:30pm GIVE US A CLUE (1985) Hosted by #MichaelParkinson with team captains #LionelBlair #UnaStubbs and a whole hosts of famous faces inc; #MelvynHayes #JoanSims #GloriaHunniford #MikeRead and many more! #TPTVsubtitles

A reminder that Father Christmas travels by train when in the UK... www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-n...

Farewell to Jerry Kasenetz, who along with his partner Jeffry Katz was the reigning king of Bubblegum Music, responsible for such enduring confections as "Yummy Yummy Yummy," "Beg, Borrow and Steal," "Little Bit O' Soul," "1-2-3 Red Light," "Simon Says" and "Chewy Chewy."

#Christmas 1966: Cliff and the Shads in panto, alongside Terry Scott, Hugh Lloyd, Jack Douglas and Peter Gilmore. Sharon Osbourne (Arden) was apparently amongst the juvenile cast.

MERRY BLOODY CHRISTMAS! www.york.ac.uk/news-and-eve...

Alan Aldridge Christmas tag ✨️

on the subject of holiday fan club singles! i've been trying to write about the Beatles xmas singles for years. finally: www.salon.com/2025/12/23/m...

The cast of Dr. Zhivago photographed during a break in filming by William Klein

The fortnight of abient time has begun. Are you used to using the sound of the familiar theme tunes on the telly to let you know what time it is? Prepare for discombobulation when the 7pm news is at 6:30pm, and the soap operas wobble around the evening like a manic drunkard.

Chris Rea, rock and blues singer-songwriter, dies aged 74

Bob Dylan writes about Willie Nelson in a new New Yorker profile (Bob also says before this, "It’s hard to talk about Willie without saying something stupid or irrelevant, he is so much of everything") www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Remembering photographer Jane Bown who died today in 2014. #Beatles www.theguardian.com/gnmeducation...

Disney studio Christmas card for 1967. Artist is Paul Wenzel. Mickey kinda ominous with his hatchet. Tbh, I'm kinda underwhelmed by this card, even with the interior. #wardsmorguefile

Bing Crosby’s personal collection sold for $6.7m at Sotheby’s in New York, delivering a white-glove sale to close out the year. buff.ly/IyQHF2M

Tonight at 2000 on BBC Four... www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

Richard Vernon was 17 when this was made.

Martin Barre confirms passing of guitarist Mick Abrahams. RIP. #JethroTull

It’s odd that people use Beatlemania as a lens for condescending to and laughing at teen girls when it’s actually clear evidence that teen girls have good taste and drive the culture

Not a vintage year, but still. Anything I've missed? 🎄 #Beatles #Christmas #ChristmasTV

Dave Willat was just 11 years old when he showed up for what he thought would be a routine church choir practice in 1965. He and his fellow singers ended up making history. n.pr/3KZCl3a

May Britt, Swedish actor and former wife of Sammy Davis Jr, dies aged 91

"Collector Jeremy Wagner was awarded $61,241 in damages after suing photographer Ross Halfin for allegedly selling him four Lynyrd Skynyrd prints for more than $7,300 while claiming authorship of the images." petapixel.com/2025/12/03/c...

MR. MAGOO’S CHRISTMAS CAROL debuted #OTD in 1962. Jim Backus stars in this brilliantly conceived, beautifully animated musical adaptation w/ songs by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill. This was TV’s first animated Christmas special — and it's a strong contender for its best. #Animation #ChristmasMovies

A Beatles drawing (and the accompanying print) I did back in 2013 went to its new home this week.

"Freeeeee!" A quite touching summation of the FAAB sessions. Lovely. youtu.be/-699G6yCZPY?...

Paul's remarks on Hofner's bankruptcy #Hofner #PaulMcCartney

Your other yearly reminder that the Christmas episode of Bob Dylan’s Theme Time Radio Hour might be the only Xmas music you need to play for the holiday to get festive. Trust me: it’s an excellent way to spend two Yule hours. (Also available on the Internet Archive, among other places.)

'Unseen footage'

Anth 9 excerpt or new? (Tomorrow) youtu.be/-699G6yCZPY?...

I have lots of strong feelings about this, but I'm going to lead with optimism: Apparently people think there is going to be a 2029! bsky.app/profile/thr....

"I got every reason on earth to be mad..."

What Goes On full demo appeared on YouTube overnight youtu.be/cOI4Tgfwk4c?...

Central London could get a new covered alley, running through a building from Dean Street to Soho Square, if plans to refurbish Twentieth Century Fox’s former London headquarters go ahead. www.ianvisits.co.uk/articles/pla...

LWT’s Humphrey Burton has died at the age of 94.

Had a great time talking to TONI BASIL - who's done everything worked with everyone: Elvis, the Rat Pack, Bowie, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson, Tina Turner, Talking Heads, Devo, the Lockers - and had a hit of her own of course - she's been places! www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

I'll probably have more to say tomorrow. What a week its already turning out to be...but time marches for us all. 𝙐𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙.

Not a vintage year, but still. Anything I've missed? 🎄 #Beatles #Christmas #ChristmasTV

Nicker Elastic King

Co-executive produced by Apple's Jonathan Clyde and Olivia Harrison, this documentary had a limited release online and at the Doc NYC film festival last year. I trust it'll make it way to European viewers in due course. #BillyPreston deadline.com/2025/12/bill...

"Bestowed with the honorific of Ustad, Hussain collaborated with artists across genres, from West Coast psychedelic pioneers the Grateful Dead to George Harrison, banjo player Béla Fleck and jazz saxophonists Pharoah Sanders and Charles Lloyd." The legacy of tabla player Zakir Hussain: