| Magical Mystery Tour | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:MMT_poster.jpg) The 1988 VHS release cover art | |
| Genre | |
| Written by | The Beatles |
| Directed by | The Beatles |
| Starring | The Beatles |
| Narrated by | John Lennon |
| Composer | The Beatles |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producer | Denis O'Dell |
| Cinematography | Richard Starkey M.B.E. |
| Editor | Roy Benson |
| Running time | 52 minutes |
| Production companies | Apple Corps BBC |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC1 |
| Release | 26 December 1967 |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
Magical Mystery Tour is a 1967 British made-for-television musical film written, produced, directed by, and starring the Beatles. It is the third film that starred the band and depicts a group of people on a coach tour (including the band members) who experience strange happenings caused by magicians (also played by the band as well as road manager Mal Evans). The premise was inspired by Ken Kesey's Furthur adventures with the Merry Pranksters and the then-popular coach trips from Liverpool to see the Blackpool Lights. Paul McCartney is credited with conceptualising and leading the project.
Much of Magical Mystery Tour was shot in and around RAF West Malling, a decommissioned military airfield in Kent, and the script was largely improvised. Shooting proceeded on the basis of a mostly handwritten collection of ideas, sketches and situations. The film is interspersed with musical interludes, which include the Beatles performing "I Am the Walrus" wearing animal masks and the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band performing Vivian Stanshall and Neil Innes' "Death Cab for Cutie".
The film originally aired on BBC1, in black-and-white, on Boxing Day, 26 December 1967. A colour transmission followed on BBC2 on 5 January 1968. It received mixed-to-negative reviews,[3] although its accompanying soundtrack was a commercial and critical success. The film received an American theatrical release in 1974 by New Line Cinema, and in select theatres worldwide in 2012 by Apple Films.[4]
- ^ Thill, Scott (14 September 2012). "The Beatles' Surreal Magical Mystery Tour to Get Resurrected for Millennials". Wired. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- ^ Harris, John (25 September 2012). "Fab furore: Is it time to re-evaluate the Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour?". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 November 2019.
- ^ "Arena – The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour, 1. Magical Mystery Tour Revisited" Bbc.co.uk, Broadcast 6 October 2012.
- ^ "In Theatres". Magicalmysterytour.com. Retrieved 3 February 2018.