Roger Appleton

No Hamburg No Beatles

“We were born in Liverpool but grew up in Hamburg” John Lennon. This feature documentary seeks to find the truth in those words. The long and winding road that the Beatles took to worldwide fame passed through Hamburg, Germany in the early 1960s. Only a couple of years before they became household names, the former “Quarrymen” were cutting their musical teeth on nightclub stages in Hamburg. In the 15 years after the end of WW2 Hamburg had become the vice capital of Europe. Its neon lit streets were home to sailors, prostitutes, drug dealers, gangs and low life. The group was still developing. At the time of their first Hamburg adventure, George Harrison, was only 17 years old. They were all still very young men, and their group was virtually unknown. By the time of their last German visit in 1966, the Beatles were a worldwide phenomenon.

No Hamburg No Beatles

“We were born in Liverpool but grew up in Hamburg” John Lennon. This feature documentary seeks to find the truth in those words. The long and winding road that the Beatles took to worldwide fame passed through Hamburg, Germany in the early 1960s. Only a couple of years before they became household names, the former “Quarrymen” were cutting their musical teeth on nightclub stages in Hamburg. In the 15 years after the end of WW2 Hamburg had become the vice capital of Europe. Its neon lit streets were home to sailors, prostitutes, drug dealers, gangs and low life. The group was still developing. At the time of their first Hamburg adventure, George Harrison, was only 17 years old. They were all still very young men, and their group was virtually unknown. By the time of their last German visit in 1966, the Beatles were a worldwide phenomenon.

Looking for Lennon

Documentary exploring the truth behind the legend of John Lennon.

Get Back

It’s a great pop music myth that in Liverpool everything began and ended with the Beatles. It didn’t. Get Back documents the real story of the city’s music outpourings, from post war years to present day. It’s a story of a city where literally thousands of bands and artists, hundreds of clubs, promoters and managers put on the biggest, loudest and longest party in history. The golden era of The Cavern and Merseybeat generated a massive tectonic shift in popular culture and in the 1970s it started again with a new scene and yet another cellar club at its heart – Eric’s. Bands such as Deaf School, Echo and the Bunnymen and OMD led the way. Then Frankie Goes to Hollywood, the Farm, the La’s, the Christians. And more recently it continued, the city’s bands always inventive and always re-inventing, with the Zutons, Coral, Wombats and more. The story is unending but Get Back offers music fans a chance to enjoy the narrative and the sounds created so far in the city that rocked the world…