Aussie teen who crashed the stage during Beatles TV special interview

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I wanna hold your hand! Aussie teen who crashed the stage during Beatles TV special reveals the moment he met John Lennon - before Paul told the cops to let him be
· Brent McAuslan jumped on to the stage at Melbourne's Festival Hall
· Dashed past police to shake hands with John Lennon in 1964
· Paul told cops to 'let him go' after they trapped him against a wall
By SARAH DEAN
PUBLISHED: 23 May 2014

The man who jumped on to a policeman's shoulder and launched himself on-stage with The Beatles in 1964 has revealed the moment he shook John Lennon's hand before Paul McCartney told police to 'let him go'.
Brent McAuslan shot to fame when he escaped from the packed crowd at Melbourne's Festival Hall to shake hands with his idol John Lennon in front of thousands.
The Beatles had just finished their final song of the night, Long Tall Sally, when the 19-year-old Australian broke through security to reach the Fab Four.


Idol: Brent McAuslan shot to fame when he jumped from the packed crowd at Melbourne's Festival Hall to shake hands with John Lennon

Lennon held out his hand to the Mr McAuslan, and asked: 'How are you, cobber?'
But seconds later police dashed on stage to grab him.
The lifelong Beatles fan escaped without arrest thanks to one man - Sir Paul McCartney.

Mr McAuslan, who is now 50 and living on the Gold Coast, told the Herald Sun he was trapped against a wall by police after the incident.


The hand that touched Lennon: Mr McAuslan is now 50 but is still contacted about the day he stormed the stage


Super fan: He hugged John Lennon before police grabbed him from the stage


Famous: His brave efforts were captured on film and shown around the world

But as the band came off stage, Macca told them to let him go.
'I think the cops thought I made them look stupid,' Mr McAuslan said.
'Then when Paul told them to let me go, it was like Moses parting the waters. They just let me go back into the crowd.'
In an interview posted on YouTube by Laura Scheirich, which includes footage of the incident, Mr McAuslan jokes: 'I wish I was as fit now as I was then.'
He explains how he diverted the police's attention by asking a pretty girl to run up to the stage ahead of him and distract the cops.
And when he surprisingly made it on to the stage, he claims he didn't feel like he was doing anything wrong.


Fab Four: The Beatles sent Melbourne into a spin in the sixties

'I felt connected with him, I didn't feel like I was invading,' he recounts.
Beatlemania took over Australia for two delirious weeks when the band arrived Down Under in in June 1964.
Five thousand screaming fans greeted the band at Essendon Airport, Melbourne.
Another 200,000 people watched their motorcade into the city, with streets cordoned off and fans hanging from trees just to get a glimpse of the biggest band in the world.
Forty thousand people paid up to 37 shillings (about $3.70) to see The Beatles' Melbourne shows.
They played six concerts at Festival Hall (two a night, at 6pm and 8.45pm) and performed 10 songs in just 27 minutes.


 
Interview posted on YouTube