The Fab Four, aka The Beatles, pose by the drum kit at Exeter ABC in November 1963 - left to right, Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and John Lennon
(Image: Mirrorpix)
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Beatles' autographs and Four Weddings hat for sale
Richard Green and Georgina Barnes, South West
BBC News
December 03 2025
Paul McCartney and George Harrison are two of the signatures in the 1963 booklet
BBC
Autographs of members of The Beatles and a hat from the 1994 film Four Weddings and A Funeral are among the music and film memorabilia due to go under the hammer in Exeter next week.
The hat worn by American actress Andie MacDowell in the box office hit was given to a local resident who had worked on the set, said Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood auction house.
The Beatles' autographs - signatures of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison, but missing John Lennon - were collected when the group toured the county and performed in Exeter.
Auctioneer Brian Goodison said the signatures should draw a lot of interest: "It was part of their 1963 autumn tour and it was the height of Beatlemania."
He added: "They've got an estimate of £400-£600, but, because of the provenance, they should reach the top end of that."
Andie MacDowell wore the hat in the 1994 movie Four Weddings and a Funeral/Polygram Film Production/Working Title/Mike Newell
Mr Goodison said the hat was given to Catherine Foxcroft who worked for the BBC, but was also working on the set.
He said: "She was also sometimes asked to do elocution on movie sets and films so she dealt with actors and actresses and one of the actresses she dealt with was Andy McDowall.
"This was given to her as a thank you for all the elocution lessons."
The sale is being held on 9-10 December.
All smiles, The Beatles looking relaxed backstage before their gig at the ABC Cinema, Exeter, in November 1963 - left to right, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr
Toto Guitarist Steve Lukather, who also plays in Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band, knows lots of musicians. Here he remembers his friendships with Eddie Van Halen and Jeff Beck.
(MANDATORY CREDIT Koh Hasebe/Shinko Music/Getty Images) Steve Lukather live at Rock In Karuizawa 1986 with Jeff Beck, Carlos Santana, Nagano, July 1, 1986. (Photo by Koh Hasebe/Shinko Music/Getty Images)
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In Part 1 and Part 2 of this interview series with Toto guitarist Steve Lukather , we covered his thoughts on playing guitar in Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.
In Part 3, learn a bit more about Ringo. Following are edited excerpts from a longer conversation.
LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 19, 2014: Guitarist Steve Lukather (L) and Ringo Starr perform onstage at The Greek Theatre. (Photo by Paul R. Giunta/Getty Images)
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Jim Clash: Let's start with your take on recording in the studio versus say, playing a live gig.
Steve Lukather: When you're playing live, the song has already been produced so you know exactly how it's going to go. You just need to learn how to do it right. In the studio, it's all precision and creativity.
When you're creating from nothing but a piece of paper that has E, G, A-minor, F, G-major-seventh, etc., you need to have an arranger's ears and not just play the chords - that would be boring. You have to find little things like where to put an arpeggio, something that adds to the end of a phrase that the artist wouldn't think of but isn't hokey. If you do that consistently, people in the business notice, and you get called back for other studio work. We all have ears for stuff like that.
Now we explore his tenure with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.
Jim Clash: Let's start with your long-time involvement with Ringo Starr's all-star band.
Steve Lukather: I'm heading into my 14th year now. It's the greatest gig in the world. Ringo is a dear friend. We live close by and hang out. He came over to the house for my birthday. He called me on Thanksgiving. If you would have told me that, when I was 10 years old Ringo will be a close friend when I was 68, I would have said, "C'mon man," like I would be the first man on Venus [laughs].
I've had a chance to work with Paul and George, but Ringo was my last Beatle. When I saw the band on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, my life went from black and white to color, the Wizard Of Oz. I said to myself, I have to do that, be George, make that twangy sound like his solo in, "I Saw Her Standing There." I got to tell George the whole story later when I met him [laughs]. We hung out for a few years, then sadly you know what happened.
I've had an extraordinary life I'm grateful for. I've done things that nobody even believes when I say them out loud. It's not lost on me. I'm not jaded. I shake my head and think, "Did I really do all of that?"
Clash: We touched upon Ringo earlier. What’s it been like playing in his band for the last dozen years?
Lukather: I adore the man. Yeah, he's a Beatle. At first, you're like, "Holy crap, this is Ringo from The Beatles." You can't help it when you're around these guys. After chilling and becoming friends, though, some of that wears off. But there's always a respect that I will never lose. I'm siting there with friends, and all of a sudden I get a FaceTime from Ringo. "Damn, really?" [laughs]. Sometimes, I can't believe it myself.
PARIS, FRANCE - MARCH 04, 2024: Ringo Starr attends the Stella McCartney Womenswear Fall/Winter 2024-2025 show as part of Paris Fashion Week. (Photo by Arnold Jerocki/Getty Images)
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Clash: How does Ringo choose which musicians he rotates into the group year-in and year-out?
Lukather: It used to be more of a rotation. At this point in Ringo's life, he chooses a group of people more on a friendship level. He has fun. He knows it's easy for him. I mean, the cat's going to be 86 and still wants to go on the road [laughs]. He's a human anomaly. And there's his wife Barbara [Bach]. She looks as beautiful as ever. They've got a groovy family, man. It's a joy to be around them.
The Pre-Christmas Beatles Release List – Even More To Add!
by Beatlesblogger
Posted on December 1, 2025
In late October we published a graphic titled “If You Want To Keep Up, Here’s Everything You’ll Need To Order” showing what we then thought was every Beatle, solo, or Beatle-related title released (or about to be released) this holiday season.
It didn’t last long. Some helpful readers pointed out we’d left out Ringo’sStop & Smell The Roses – the numbered, liquid vinyl edition – limited to 400 copies.
This was due November 14, but seems to have been delayed. It is currently looking like December 5 now.
And the other Ringo Starr was a red vinyl re-issue of his 14th studio album, Choose Love from 2005. This had first been slated for Record Store Day Black Friday, but was quietly removed from official lists prior to the day. It’s popped up again on the Friday Music site, this time with a late January 2026 release date (though knowing Friday Music that is extremely likely to change):
Then came news of the John Lennon and Yoko Ono ‘War Is Over (If You Want It)’ 12″ Zoetrope pressing issued to coincide with the release of the children’s hardback book and the premiere of the short animated film of the same name on YouTube.
Then Dark Horse Records announced it would be issuing a further title from the Yusuf/Cat Stevens back catalogue that the label now has the rights to. It’s called Tell ‘Em I’m Gone and it will be on yellow vinyl:
So, each of these were duly added into a revised graphic and we were just about to re-publish when last Friday came news of yet another collectable, this time linked to the Beatles’Anthology re-issue – and in particular Anthology 4. On it are the 2025 re-mixes of ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ and they are now being released as a limited edition, double A-side 7″ translucent milk white vinyl single. This is the 2025 mix of both songs.
There’s been no indication of a CD version of the single being made available (except for Japan where there’s been an exclusive Japan-only CD announced). Nor has there been any talk of updated versions of the ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ EPs (or “maxi-singles”) which were originally released to accompany Volumes 1 and 2 of Anthology back in 1995 and 1996. That means all of the extra tracks on those EPs will remain unavailable, with the exception of the song ‘This Boy’, which has been added to the Anthology Volume 4 discs.
The ‘Free As A Bird’ (2025 Mix)/’Real Love’ (2025 Mix) 7″ coloured vinyl single is only available from Beatles official stores (e.g. in the UK or the US), or from certain Universal Music online stores (eg. this one in Germany).
So, it has been a most busy time for any Beatle collector who is a completist. There’s been so much product so fast it’s been difficult to keep up.
To help, here’s our updated visual. If you want everything, this is what you’ll need to order. There are no fewer that 51 items here! This has got to be unprecedented in the run-up to Christmas:
