Friday 6 November 1964 · Live performances · Gaumont Cinema, Southampton · By Beatles Fabdom
The Beatles performed two shows at the Gaumont Cinema in Southampton on Friday 6 November 1964. It was the 23rd date of their autumn British tour and their third and final concert visit to the city.
Before the first show, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr were interviewed in their dressing room by Tony Bilbow for Southern Television’s Day By Day. The interview was broadcast later that evening.
The Southampton engagement followed the previous night’s concerts at Nottingham Odeon. The tour would continue to Cardiff the following day before its final three stops in Liverpool, Sheffield and Bristol.
Southampton concert facts
| Date | Friday 6 November 1964 |
|---|---|
| Venue | Gaumont Cinema, Southampton |
| Present-day venue | Mayflower Theatre |
| Address | Commercial Road, Southampton, Hampshire SO15 1GE, England |
| Tour | 1964 autumn British tour |
| Tour position | 23rd of 27 dates |
| Show times | 6.15pm and 8.40pm |
| Beatles’ fee | £850 for the two concerts |
| Compère | Bob Bain |
| Television interview | Tony Bilbow, Southern Television’s Day By Day |
| Earlier Southampton dates | 20 May and 13 December 1963 |
Two shows at the Gaumont
The evening’s programmes began at 6.15pm and 8.40pm. Each brought together the touring package of supporting performers before The Beatles’ ten-song headline set.
The band’s £850 payment covered the two concerts. The two-house format was a regular feature of this tour, allowing separate audiences to attend the early and late shows at each venue.
By this point The Beatles had completed their summer North American tour and released the film and British LP A Hard Day’s Night. Six songs from that album featured in their autumn stage programme.
Tony Bilbow’s backstage interview
Southern Television sent Tony Bilbow to interview the group in their dressing room before the first concert. The recording was made for the regional programme Day By Day, which went on air from 6.05pm that evening.
The interview placed the group’s Southampton appearance on local television as the evening’s first audience gathered at the Gaumont. Bilbow later became familiar to television viewers through BBC2’s arts programme Late Night Line-Up.
A set of Beatles signatures later sold by Christie’s was described as having been obtained at the Gaumont on 6 November 1964. Its provenance linked the vendor’s aunt with Southern Television and the group’s dressing-room interview.
Setlist
- Twist And Shout
- Money (That’s What I Want)
- Can’t Buy Me Love
- Things We Said Today
- I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
- I Should Have Known Better
- If I Fell
- I Wanna Be Your Man
- A Hard Day’s Night
- Long Tall Sally
A Hard Day’s Night on stage and on record
“Can’t Buy Me Love”, “Things We Said Today”, “I’m Happy Just To Dance With You”, “I Should Have Known Better”, “If I Fell” and “A Hard Day’s Night” accounted for six of the ten selections.
George Harrison’s vocal feature was “I’m Happy Just To Dance With You”. Ringo sang “I Wanna Be Your Man”, while McCartney closed the set with “Long Tall Sally”. The opening pair, “Twist And Shout” and “Money”, drew on recordings from the group’s first two British albums.
On the same day as the Southampton concerts, Parlophone released Extracts From The Album A Hard Day’s Night. That four-track EP included “Things We Said Today”, also heard in the concert set, alongside “Any Time at All”, “I’ll Cry Instead” and “When I Get Home”.
The separate film EP released on 4 November included “I Should Have Known Better” and “If I Fell”, both also in the live programme. The forthcoming Beatles For Sale album had not yet reached British shops.
The touring bill
The support acts were The Rustiks, Sounds Incorporated, Michael Haslam, The Remo Four, Tommy Quickly and Mary Wells. Bob Bain served as compère.
The tour’s red programme presented John, Paul, George and Ringo as four playing-card aces. It covered the British tour running from 9 October to 10 November 1964, with Mary Wells among the featured supporting artists.
Three Southampton concert visits
The Beatles first played the Gaumont on 20 May 1963 during the Roy Orbison tour. They returned on 13 December 1963, the final date of their autumn tour that year.
The November 1964 booking was their third Southampton engagement. All three dates took place at the same Commercial Road theatre.
| Date | Engagement |
|---|---|
| 20 May 1963 | First Southampton visit, Roy Orbison tour |
| 13 December 1963 | Second visit, final date of the 1963 autumn tour |
| 6 November 1964 | Third and final visit, two concerts and Day By Day interview |
From the Empire to the Mayflower Theatre
The theatre opened as the Empire in 1928. Designed by W. and T. R. Milburn, it became the Gaumont in 1950, the name it carried for all three Beatles visits.
Southampton City Council purchased the building in 1986. Following refurbishment, it reopened as the Mayflower Theatre in February 1987. The surviving theatre is Grade II listed.
The concert venue is today’s Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, Hampshire SO15 1GE. This is the Commercial Road theatre, distinct from Mayflower Studios on Above Bar Street.
Open the former Gaumont, now Mayflower Theatre, in Google Maps. The theatre’s heritage account records all three Beatles appearances.
Complete 1964 autumn British tour itinerary
The tour comprised 27 dates, opening in Bradford on 9 October and ending in Bristol on 10 November. Southampton was the 23rd stop.
- 9 October — Gaumont, Bradford
- 10 October — De Montfort Hall, Leicester
- 11 October — Odeon, Birmingham
- 13 October — ABC, Wigan
- 14 October — ABC, Ardwick, Manchester
- 15 October — Globe, Stockton-on-Tees
- 16 October — ABC, Hull
- 19 October — ABC, Edinburgh
- 20 October — Caird Hall, Dundee
- 21 October — Odeon, Glasgow
- 22 October — Odeon, Leeds
- 23 October — Gaumont State, Kilburn, London
- 24 October — Granada, Walthamstow, London
- 25 October — Hippodrome, Brighton
- 28 October — ABC, Exeter
- 29 October — ABC, Plymouth
- 30 October — Gaumont, Bournemouth
- 31 October — Gaumont, Ipswich
- 1 November — Astoria, Finsbury Park, London
- 2 November — King’s Hall, Belfast
- 4 November — Ritz, Luton
- 5 November — Odeon, Nottingham
- 6 November — Gaumont, Southampton: this engagement
- 7 November — Capitol, Cardiff
- 8 November — Empire, Liverpool
- 9 November — City Hall, Sheffield
- 10 November — Colston Hall, Bristol
Explore the A Hard Day’s Night collection
Browse our A Hard Day’s Night collection, reflecting the album that supplied six songs in the Southampton set.
The A Hard Day’s Night 8 Track T-shirt features the album portrait grid and track-list lettering.
The A Hard Day’s Night steel wall sign carries the blue album-cover design.
Frequently asked questions
When did The Beatles play Southampton in 1964?
They performed two shows at the Gaumont Cinema on Friday 6 November 1964, with programmes beginning at 6.15pm and 8.40pm.
Was this their last Southampton concert visit?
Yes. It was their third and final visit, after appearances at the Gaumont on 20 May and 13 December 1963.
Who interviewed The Beatles backstage?
Tony Bilbow interviewed them for Southern Television’s Day By Day before the first concert. The programme was broadcast that evening from 6.05pm.
What was the setlist?
The ten-song set opened with Twist And Shout and closed with Long Tall Sally. It included six songs from A Hard Day’s Night.
How much were The Beatles paid?
They received £850 for the evening’s two concerts.
What is the Gaumont called today?
The building is now the Mayflower Theatre on Commercial Road, Southampton.
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