''The Beatles Book'' (also known as ''Beatles Monthly'') was a

fan magazine A fan magazine is a commercially written and published magazine intended for the amusement of fans of the popular culture subject matter which it covers. It is distinguished from a scholarly, literary or trade magazine on the one hand, by the tar ...

dedicated to the English rock band

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

, founded in 1963. It was first published in August 1963 and continued for 77 editions until it stopped publication after the December 1969 edition. It was revived in 1976, and ceased publication in 2003.

Publication history

In early 1963 a music writer and publisher, Sean O’Mahony, (who already published a magazine about the music scene called ''

Beat Instrumental ''Beat Instrumental'' was a UK monthly pop and rock magazine. Founded by Sean O'Mahony (aka Johnny Dean) and first published in May 1963 as ''Beat Monthly'', it became ''Beat Instrumental Monthly'' with issue 18 and ''Beat Instrumental'' from ...

'') heard ''

Please Please Me ''Please Please Me'' is the debut studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Produced by George Martin, it was released on EMI's Parlophone label on 22 March 1963 in the United Kingdom, following the success of the band's first two s ...

'' and asked

Brian Epstein Brian Samuel Epstein (; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967) was a British music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967. Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put him i ...

if he could publish a magazine devoted to

. Epstein and the group agreed and the title launched in August 1963 with a print run of 80,000. By the end of the year circulation had grown to 330,000 copies per month. O’Mahony edited the magazine under the name of Johnny Dean. The magazine's photographer, Leslie Bryce, had unrivalled access to the group throughout the 1960s, travelling the world and taking thousands of photographs. In addition, Beatles roadies

Neil Aspinall Neil Stanley Aspinall (13 October 1941 24 March 2008) was a British music industry executive. A school friend of Paul McCartney and George Harrison, he went on to head the Beatles' company Apple Corps. The Beatles employed Aspinall first as t ...

and

Mal Evans Malcolm Frederick Evans (27 May 1935 – 5 January 1976) was an English road manager and personal assistant employed by the Beatles from 1963 until their break-up in 1970. In the early 1960s, Evans was employed as a telephone engineer, and a ...

wrote many of the articles, and artist

Bob Gibson Robert Gibson (born Pack Robert Gibson; November 9, 1935October 2, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975). Nicknamed "Gibby" and "Hoot" ( ...

created numerous cartoons and caricatures of the fab four on a regular basis. (He eventually did the cartoons for the Beatles' 1967 ''

Magical Mystery Tour ''Magical Mystery Tour'' is a record by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a double EP in the United Kingdom and an LP in the United States. It includes the soundtrack to the 1967 television film of the same name. The EP ...

'' EP-set/US-album booklet.) In May 1976 O’Mahony revived the publication and republished all 77 original issues surrounded by eight (later sixteen) pages of new Beatles news and articles. The reissue programme was completed in September 1982, coincidentally at a time when interest in the band was high due to the impending twentieth anniversary of "

Love Me Do "Love Me Do" is the official debut single by the English rock band the Beatles, backed by " P.S. I Love You". When the single was originally released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 1962, it peaked at number 17. It was released in the Unite ...

". Consequently, the decision was taken to continue the magazine with all new content. Publication continued until January 2003 (issue 321) when it once again ceased. Sean O'Mahony retired from publishing in 2002 and died in 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beatles Book, The 1963 establishments in the United Kingdom 1969 disestablishments in the United Kingdom 1976 establishments in the United Kingdom 2003 disestablishments in the United Kingdom The Beatles Music magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1963 Magazines disestablished in 1969 Magazines reestablished in 1976 Magazines disestablished in 2003 Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom