A Mad Day Out With Don McCullin And The Beatles

During the recording of "The White Album" on July 28, 1968, the Beatles dedicated the day to racing around London for a photoshoot, specifically for the cover of "Life" magazine, which later earned the nickname "Mad Day Out."

The Beatles drew large crowds of fans wherever they traveled, prompting the entourage to constantly move to different locations, resulting in a hectic shooting schedule. Although Paul McCartney had initially invited Don McCullin to take photos that day, five additional photographers arrived, including Mal Evans and Tom Murray, whose images are featured here. Completing the group were Yoko Ono, Francie Schwartz, and Gary Evans, Mal's six-year-old son.

One day in 1968 I got a phone call, which I thought was just a joke. An unfamiliar voice said he was phoning from Apple and wondered if I would consider spending a day photographing The Beatles for a fee of two hundred pounds. They were a little tired of approaches from photographers and wanted to get a fresh supply of pictures. They would return the negatives and I would keep the copyright.

Don McCullin A Day In The Life Of The Beatles

The initial site was Thomson House, the residence of the “Times” newspaper, where Lord Snowden had established a photography studio. McCullin captured images of the band with a blue backdrop, and one of these images was eventually featured on the cover of “Life” on September 13, 1968.

After Thomson House was demolished, the band went to the Mercury Theatre in Notting Hill, where they had an impromptu photo shoot with a live parrot. McCullin observed that the lighting in the old theater was inadequate, which may explain why there are few photos from that location.

Later, The Beatles visited Highgate Cemetery for a quick photo session outdoors, and then headed to Old Street. At Old Street, they climbed onto the roundabout in the busy street and posed on a large concrete block (shown below).

Presumably fans were quick to spot the Beatles since this is a busy section of London, so they moved on to St. Pancras Old Church and Gardens, where shots were taken of the Beatles larking around with the water fountain and in a flowerbed of tall hollyhocks (see photo at bottom). This was also where the Beatles were snapped next to a man asleep on the bench—apparently he never woke up—and where McCullin got the shot for the gatefold sleeve of the “Red” and “Blue” compilation albums of 1973.

The most bizarre photograph of the day was taken at the next location, Wapping Pier (top photo), where John Lennon suddenly dropped to the ground and played dead. The other three Beatles crouched over him, making an eerily, prophetic picture. The final location for the day was Paul McCartney’s house at 7 Cavendish Avenue, St. John’s Wood, where the band was photographed in a glass dome that McCartney had constructed in his garden.

The “Mad Day Out” photo session appears to be all fun and frolics, but considered against the background of the Beatles’ lives and careers at the time, some of the images take on a whole new meaning. The band was in the middle of recording “The White Album” at Abbey Road Studios, a recording notoriously fraught with tension and dissent. They were also launching their new corporation, Apple Corps, which was a great source of stress for all concerned.

During the recording of previous albums, outsiders were not allowed. However, during the sessions for "The White Album," Yoko Ono attended and had an influence, along with McCartney's girlfriend, Francie Schwartz. The sessions became chaotic, with band members recording in separate studios. The situation escalated, leading to Ringo Starr quitting the band on August 22nd. He eventually returned two weeks later after being persuaded by the rest of the group.

McCullin was the main photographer of the day, and chose the settings while mostly giving The Beatles free rein to choose their own poses. The reason for this, he explains in the book’s introduction, was because his normal working methods were quite different from The Beatles’ requirements.

I’m a battlefield photographer. I knew how to deal with certain kinds of photographic calamities, but not on this scale. I was slightly in awe and out of my depth. I wasn’t accustomed to the speed of their world. I was used to running street battles and this was something different… They may have been disappointed with me. I had no words of wisdom. The day was a hit-and-run accident. They just threw themselves into situations. They completely opened themselves. They gave me every opportunity, and then they took over.

Don McCullin A Day In The Life Of The Beatles

A little more than a year after the Mad Day Out, The Beatles had all but ceased to exist as a group. The painful experience of recording Let It Be, the business wranglings at Apple, and John Lennon’s increasing independence all helped in their demise as a unit. However, even in the summer of 1968 relations were not always harmonious. Less than a month after the Mad Day Out, Ringo Starr temporarily quit The Beatles, unhappy at the difficult studio atmosphere while recording the White Album.

However, none of this is evident in Don McCullin's photographs. The collection A Day In The Life Of The Beatles depicts the band as a tightly-knit group, sharing laughter and jokes, and striking exaggerated poses for the camera. The images show them enjoying themselves, dancing, wearing various outfits, and using props like diving goggles, colorful capes, a live parrot, and McCartney's sheepdog Martha. In a touching moment, Lennon is captured pretending to be dead while the rest of the group watches over him. Another photo features Lennon with Yoko Ono and Ringo Starr, all three of them engaged in playful banter.

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