The Beatles at Cambridge Hall, Southport

Between March 1961 and October 1963 The Beatles played around 30 concerts in Southport — across nine different venues. Some venues have been demolished but The Atkinson on Lord Street is too posh and established to perish. The Beatles travelled 20 miles from Liverpool to play here on Thursday 26th July 1962. On a visit to Southport I thought I’d take a couple of photos.

At the time of the concert the lads weren’t known outside Merseyside and sang other people's songs. Only months earlier Brian Epstein had seen them play at The Cavern and spotted a raw talent he could harness (he’d signed them up at his shop.) Until that time he found work for them around Merseyside and Lancashire so they didn't have to find jobs.

In July 1962 Joe Brown had a top ten hit with A Picture of You but he wasn't a big enough star to carry a full concert. The event was called The Joe Brown Show and he performed along with The Dakotas, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Billy Kramer and the Four Jays. A ticket booked in advance was 30 pence or you could turn up on the night and pay 35 pence. The show started at 7.30pm and finished at 11.30pm. Few people owned cameras then and no photos exist of The Beatles performing on stage. They probably played four or five songs and as hardly anyone knew them their songs weren't drowned out by screaming (and often urinating) fans.

Presently the handsome building is called The Atkinson named after William Atkins who was a wealthy cotton manufacturer from Knaresborough who loved visiting the seaside town with his sick wife (I must seek out his grave.) He donated a total of £15,000 for the building to be built. It’s good to he hasn’t been forgotten. He loved Southport so much he moved there and donated a further £40,000 to the town.

Me and a friend were passing the building on the way to a Wetherspoons pub for our tea and here are some photos. Can you imagine seeing the Beatles for 30 pence? I did a salute and left.