Beatles for Your Pocket

The first edition of The Beatles own A5 sized monthly magazine was published this day August 1st, 1963, by Beat Publications, whose magazine Beat Instrumental had been launched the year before and started to feature The Beatles prominently. Geared (get it?) towards the groups many young female fans, Beatles Monthly printed full page photos of each of the Beatles in a strict four way split. In 1963, this sort of magazine was the easiest way for fans to follow their favourite stars, and many titles appeared, ran for a few months or a couple of years, and then vanished when the stars allure waned. The Beatles monthly ran on till the very end of the 60s and then came back in 1976 until finally ceasing publication for good in 2003. This first issue (pictured here) included brief introductions to each of the four, news of forthcoming stage, radio and TV events, the words to a Beatles song, a letter from the Fan Club secretary, and many photos. When the editor, Johnny Dean met with the Beatles in June to discuss the new venture, Paul McCartney asked: "What on earth are you going to find to write about us each month?" In October 2013, Mark Lewisohn publishes the first of three 800 page volumes of the Beatles Biography, which promises astonishing new information on nearly every page.