The Beatles Live at the Adelphi Cinema, Slough – 18 May 1963

Q: What did The Beatles perform on Thank Your Lucky Stars on 18 May 1963?

'From Me to You' and 'I Saw Her Standing There', recorded 12 May and broadcast on ITV on 18 May 1963.

May 17, 2026

The Beatles Live at the Adelphi Cinema, Slough – 18 May 1963

Saturday 18 May 1963 | Live
Adelphi Cinema, Slough, Buckinghamshire

On 18 May 1963, The Beatles opened their third UK tour at the Adelphi Cinema in Slough, Buckinghamshire — second on the bill to Roy Orbison. Also on the tour were Gerry and the Pacemakers, David Macbeth, Louise Cordet, Tony Marsh, Terry Young Six, Erkey Grant, and Ian Crawford. The tour ran until 9 June 1963, ending in Blackburn, Lancashire. The same evening, an episode of Thank Your Lucky Stars featuring The Beatles was broadcast on ITV.

Second on the Bill to Roy Orbison

The Beatles began the tour below Roy Orbison on the bill — a billing that would not last long. Orbison was at the peak of his commercial powers in 1963, with a string of transatlantic hits behind him. But the audience reaction to The Beatles was so overwhelming that the billing was reversed, and The Beatles moved to the top of the bill. Orbison, by all accounts, was gracious about it.

John Lennon recalled the experience in 1975, in an interview later published in Anthology:

"We were selling records but we were still second on the bill, and one of our first big tours was second on the bill to Roy Orbison. It was pretty hard to keep up with that man. He really put on a show; well, they all did, but Orbison had that fantastic voice."

— John Lennon, 1975, Anthology

George Harrison described the nightly challenge of following Orbison in Anthology:

"We soon took over as top of the bill. We had to come on after Roy. They had a trick in those theatres where they would close some of the curtains on the stage so we could set up behind them while the other bloke was still out there doing his tunes. I can't remember where his backing group was, but Roy would be out there every night and at the end he'd be singing, 'She's walking back to me, do do do do da do do-do…' And the audience would go wild. We'd be waiting there and he'd do another big encore and we'd be thinking, 'How are we going to follow this?' It was really serious stuff."

— George Harrison, Anthology

The Setlist

The Beatles' repertoire during the tour was:

'Some Other Guy'
'Do You Want to Know a Secret'
'Love Me Do'
'From Me to You'
'Please Please Me'
'I Saw Her Standing There'
'Twist and Shout'

Thank Your Lucky Stars

On the same evening — 18 May 1963 — an episode of ITV's Thank Your Lucky Stars featuring The Beatles was broadcast nationally. The appearance had been recorded on 12 May, and on it The Beatles performed 'From Me to You' and 'I Saw Her Standing There'. The programme was one of the most-watched pop music shows on British television, and The Beatles' appearances on it were a significant factor in their rapid national breakthrough.

The Tour

The Roy Orbison/Beatles UK Tour ran from 18 May to 9 June 1963, covering venues across England. It was The Beatles' third major UK tour of 1963, following the Helen Shapiro tour (February–March) and the Tommy Roe/Chris Montez tour (March–April). By the time this tour opened, The Beatles had already had two number one singles ('Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You') and their debut album Please Please Me was at number one on the UK album chart — where it would remain for 30 weeks until displaced by With the Beatles in November.

The Adelphi Cinema, Slough

The Adelphi Cinema in Slough was one of the major entertainment venues in Berkshire in the early 1960s. The Beatles returned to the Adelphi on one other occasion — 5 November 1963, during their Autumn Tour — by which point Beatlemania was at its peak and the scenes outside the venue were considerably more chaotic than they had been in May.

Key Facts: 18 May 1963

Venue: Adelphi Cinema, Slough, Buckinghamshire
Tour: Roy Orbison/Beatles UK Tour (18 May – 9 June 1963)
Billing: Second to Roy Orbison (later reversed)
Also on tour: Gerry and the Pacemakers, David Macbeth, Louise Cordet, Tony Marsh, Terry Young Six, Erkey Grant, Ian Crawford
Songs performed: 7
Same evening: Thank Your Lucky Stars (ITV) broadcast, recorded 12 May — 'From Me to You' and 'I Saw Her Standing There'
Beatles returned to Adelphi: 5 November 1963 (Autumn Tour)

Frequently Asked Questions

Why were The Beatles second on the bill to Roy Orbison?

Orbison was the established international star when the tour was booked. The Beatles' audience reaction was so overwhelming that the billing was reversed during the tour, with The Beatles moving to the top of the bill.

What did John Lennon say about Roy Orbison?

In 1975, Lennon said: "It was pretty hard to keep up with that man. He really put on a show; well, they all did, but Orbison had that fantastic voice."

What did George Harrison say about following Roy Orbison on stage?

Harrison recalled: "Roy would be out there every night and at the end he'd be singing… And the audience would go wild. We'd be waiting there and he'd do another big encore and we'd be thinking, 'How are we going to follow this?' It was really serious stuff."