The Beatles Sunday Night at the London Palladium Autographs, 1963

A large sheet of paper beautifully signed by all four members of The Beatles in blue and black ballpoint pen. The autographs were obtained on 13 October 1963, during the band’s performance on Val Parnell’s Sunday Night at the London Palladium. On the night, The Beatles appeared briefly at the start of the show before compère Bruce Forsyth told the audience, “If you want to see them again, they’ll be back in 42 minutes.” And indeed, they were. The Beatles headlined the show, closing the hour-long programme. They opened with From Me to You, followed by I’ll Get You, introduced by Paul McCartney. Their latest hit, She Loves You, came next announced collectively by Lennon, McCartney, and George Harrison. The finale was Twist and Shout. McCartney attempted to introduce it but was drowned out by the screams of the audience. Lennon famously told the crowd to “shut up,” a moment that drew applause from the older attendees. McCartney then encouraged everyone to clap and stamp their feet as they launched into the closing number. Although The Beatles’ popularity had been building throughout 1963, their appearance at the London Palladium on this night is widely seen as a turning point. The overwhelming fan reaction led the mainstream press to coin the term Beatlemania the following day. The autographs come with a letter of provenance from the original owner, which reads: “I had a cousin, Lawrence Crighton, who came over from New Zealand in the early 1960s. He was a qualified electrician but wanted to try his hand at theatre work—presumably there weren’t many theatres in NZ at the time, though I believe he gained some experience through amateur productions. He was looked after initially by my dad's elder sister, my aunt Mercia, who lived in West Yorkshire at the time. She helped him get a job at a local theatre. However, Lawrence wanted to see the bright lights and eventually moved to London, where he joined the large Aussie and Kiwi community in Earl’s Court. Before he left for London, he visited our family in Liverpool with my aunt, and he learned that I was a big Beatles fan. He later secured a job as a lighting electrician at the London Palladium. When The Beatles appeared on Sunday Night at the London Palladium, he managed to get their autographs for me. I believe he sent them to me shortly after the show, and I’ve kept them ever since. Lawrence stayed in the UK for a while, travelled around Europe, and eventually returned to New Zealand.” The autographs measure 22.8 x 17.8 cm The condition is Excellent with a light stain on the reverse