If you want the definitive Beatles doc, this is it. It’s 11+ hours, but if you’re a Beatles nut, you’ll wish it were longer.
Trailer for “The Beatles Anthology”
You Can’t Make This Sh!t Up
- The Beatles used a cassette tape demo recorded by John Lennon in the late ’70s (15 years after his death) to create a “new” Beatles single (“Free as a Bird”). It hit #1 in 1995.
- Pete Best, the drummer fired just before the band hit it big, finally got a Beatles payday in 1995. Early recordings with him sold 450,000 copies in a single day.
- The surviving Beatles sat together in George Harrison’s home studio, watching old footage of themselves and reacting in real time. It’s basically the world’s most famous band doing a reaction video to their own fame.
- Plans were in motion for a full Beatles reunion concert in 1980, with Lennon on board. Just days before he was murdered, he told Yoko he wanted to return to England and reunite with the band.
Watch “The Beatles Anthology”
You can watch “The Beatles Anthology” on Disney+ or stream via DVD purchase and some digital bundles.
Ratings:
- My Rating: 95/100
- IMDB Rating: 9.1/10
- Rotten Tomatoes Ratings: 97/100 (Users); 100/100 (Critics)
Director’s Note: It was made with full creative control from Paul, George, and Ringo. Lennon’s voice comes via vintage interviews. And longtime Beatles insider Neil Aspinall spent decades pulling together rare footage from around the world.
Release Date: Originally aired on ITV (UK) from Nov 26–Dec 31, 1995, and on ABC (U.S.) as three feature-length episodes between Nov 19–23, 1995.
My Review of “The Beatles Anthology”
The Setup
In 1995, the surviving Beatles finally decided to tell the band’s story themselves. They sit in a studio watching clips of their younger selves and commenting on everything. They’re laughing at their haircuts, cringing at press questions, and opening up about the rise, the mania, the drugs, the art, and the break-up.
It’s 11+ hours, split into three feature-length episodes. If you’ve ever wanted to go from “Love Me Do” to the rooftop concert in one go, this is the ultimate ride.
More Highlights from the Doc
- All three surviving Beatles (Paul, George, Ringo) sit for long-form interviews, telling stories about Hamburg, Shea Stadium, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Yoko, Brian Epstein, and the breakup.
- There’s raw footage from their earliest club gigs in Liverpool and Hamburg, through Beatlemania, their U.S. takeover, studio sessions at Abbey Road, rooftop concerts, and their final days.
- George Martin, Neil Aspinall, and Derek Taylor all weigh in—giving the behind-the-scenes view that only true insiders could offer.
- Anthology 1, 2, and 3 albums were released alongside the series—each packed with unreleased demos, outtakes, and rare versions of iconic songs. They sold in the millions.
- The doc shows them not just as musicians, but as kids navigating insane levels of fame. You see them tired, sarcastic, thoughtful, and still totally themselves decades later.
Cameos – Lesser-Known Details from the Doc
- During the mid-90s sessions, Paul, George, and Ringo also recorded an unfinished song called “All for Love” that never saw release. It was a truly new Beatles collaboration… but it’s still in the vault.
- Yoko Ono handed Paul cassette tapes of John’s final home demos after they appeared together at Lennon’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1994.
- The original version of this doc was a 90-minute 1971 cut called “The Long and Winding Road,” built by Apple manager Neil Aspinall without the Beatles’ involvement. It sat on a shelf for 20 years.
- When they made “Free as a Bird,” producer Jeff Lynne (from ELO) had to work with a scratchy home tape of Lennon’s voice and build an entire song around it. They added harmonies, solos, and new verses without overwriting Lennon’s raw sound.
Wrap Up
This is the Beatles telling you their story in their own voices. If you care even a little about the band, it’s essential viewing.
Thanks for reading!
Heather Fenty, Guest Writer, Daily Doc