THE MAIN CHARACTERS – BRIAN EPSTEIN AND JOHN LENNON
John Lennon is portrayed by Jordan Barkley, Brian Epstein is portrayed by Joseph Winder, and the play is written by Alex King, (an award-winning writer and director of film and theatre)
THE SETTING
February 1964.The Beatles are on the cusp of changing the world. In a suite at New York’s Plaza Hotel, John Lennon and manager Brian Epstein find themselves alone for an evening that neither of them expects.
As conversation drifts between memory, ambition and identity, the boundaries between performance and reality begin to erode. John struggles to reconcile the man he is with the man the world demands he become, while Brian is forced to confront a lifetime spent hiding in plain sight. What begins as companionship gradually becomes a battle for understanding, exposing the fears, contradictions and vulnerabilities that lie beneath two carefully constructed lives.
Of All These Friends and Loversis an intimate new two-hander that imagines a deeply human encounter between two men navigating fame, expectation and the search for authenticity, asking whether anyone can truly know themselves when the whole world believes it already does.
This is the world-premiere of the play!
The production runs at The Hope Street Theatre (a stone’s throw from LIPA) during International Beatle Week, 25th – 29th August, with times as follows:
Please note that John Lennon’s college art school friend and classmate, Helen Anderson, has provided one of her famous caps that she designed for John for the play!
Actors Jordan Barkley (John Lennon) and Joseph Winder (Brian Epstein)
My only regret is that I live in the US and I will miss seeing this play. However, anyone in the US that is scheduled to be at Beatle Week in August of 2026, this is the play for you to attend and see while you are in Liverpool!
We at the blog extend our best wishes to the writer and director, Alex King, and all of the cast members and production crew. We sincerely wish you the best for a great long run for which mostcertainly will be a fascinating play and character study!
Make sure you check out all of these titles either written by Jim Berkenstadt or featuring contributions from him. I am currently reading the great new book by Jim Berkenstadt about Elvis Presley and Scotty Moore which is previewed near the bottom of the page! With all of these titles you will learn the many reasons he earned the moniker of being known as the Rock ‘n’ Roll Detective:
Here are a few samples of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Detective’s work:
Black Market Beatles: The Story Behind Their Lost Recordings. By Jim Berkenstadt and Belmo OOP (used copies at Ebay, Amazon and Abe’s bookstore)
From the publisher-a book description:
From the publisher…
Black Market Beatles is a tantalizing peek into the incredible world of unreleased Beatles material stashed in the climate controlled vaults at EMI, and leaked to the underground, as well as unreleased recordings of TV, radio and live concert appearances spanning the group’s career. If Paul, George, Ringo and Yoko have trouble deciding what to release in the future, they could do worse than to flip through this book. It is a magical mystery tour of buried treasures.
Jim Berkenstadt and Belmo Book
Nevermind Nirvana by Jim Berkenstadt and Charles Cross Amazon Paperback & Kindle
Nevermind was the album that took Nirvana out of Seattle’s alternative rock scene and turned them into a worldwide mainstream sensation. This book documents the album by featuring interviews with the band members and producers and recontructs how the album was made.
Nevermind Nirvana by Jim Berkenstadt and Charles Cross
The Beatle Who Vanished: 60th Beatles Anniversary Tour edition by Jim Berkenstadt. Paperback, Audible, Hardback, Kindle. www.thebeatlewhovanished.com
Amazon Description:
THE MYSTERY OF BEATLES’ DRUMMER JIMMIE NICOL WHO VANISHED, IS FINALLY SOLVED!
NEWLY DISCOVERED DETAILS ULTIMATELY ANSWER THE QUESTION: WHAT HAPPENED TO JIMMIE NICOL?
Is Jimmie Nicol Dead or Alive?
What happened to the famous Gold Watch given to Nicol by The Beatles?
Who is the clandestine “Josefina”?
Learn how the Rock And Roll Detective®, Jim Berkenstadt, finally solved the mystery of Beatles drummer Jimmie Nicol
HOW IS IT POSSIBLE DRUMMER JIMMIE NICOL COULD SIMPLY VANISH AFTER PLAYING WITH THE BEATLES IN 1964?
The Beatle Who Vanishedis the first historical account of Jimmie Nicol, an unknown drummer whose journey from humble beginnings to saving The Beatles first world tour was only one part of his legend. Though his 13 days of fame made headlines, the true mystery of Nicol’s story is riddled with blacklisting, betrayal, drugs, divorce, bankruptcy, and a search for validation as a musician, producer, arranger, teacher, and remodeler. However, his disappearance in 1965 led many to question whether he is dead or alive.
Mysteries In The Music: Case Closed by Jim Berkenstadt. (This book contains two Beatles-related chapters and one Traveling Wilburys chapter). Paperback, Audible, Hardback, Kindle. www.musicmysterybook.com
Amazon Description:
Mysteries in the Music: Case Closed examines the secrets, myths, legends, hoaxes, conspiracies, and the wildly inexplicable events that are such an intriguing part of rock and roll history. Jim Berkenstadt, aka The Rock And Roll Detective®, has spent decades researching the players behind these famous soundtracks and the mysteries hidden within the music itself.
Travel back to the 1950s to uncover “Who Really Discovered Elvis Presley?” Revisit a time in the 1960s when a famous folk troubadour tried to form a supergroup with members of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Learn the origin behind big name artists using pseudonyms to mask their true identities. Go behind the scenes of CIA intrigue in Jamaica 1976 to discover whether the spy agency tried to influence an election and arrange for the assassination of reggae superstar Bob Marley. Discover whether The Beach Boys actually stole a song and the copyright from psychotic cult leader Charles Manson, and kept all of the royalties. Finally, uncover the secrets in the making of Nirvana’s Nevermind album, considered by many to be the most influential rock album of the 1990s.
These mysteries have intrigued rock and roll fans for so long because no one has ever asked eyewitnesses the tough questions or dug through the primary sources and documentary evidence left behind… until now. After many decades, the back stories of pop and rock music lore are finally unearthed—and the truth is revealed inMysteries in Music: Case Closed.
THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL DETECTIVE’S NEW BOOK:
Elvis Presley: Conversations with Scotty Moore by Jim Berkenstadt. Paperback and Kindle. Release Date: August 11, 2026.
It was the day a young delivery truck driver named Elvis Presley walked into guitarist Scotty Moore’s Memphis living room to sing—and change popular music forever. Only three men were there: Elvis, Scotty, and bassist Bill Black. From that moment came a new kind of independence for American youth: the birth of Rock and Roll.
In Elvis Presley: Conversations with Scotty Moore, Elvis’s first guitarist, manager, and close confidante, reveals how a shy kid from Memphis became the King of Rock and Roll.
Scotty recalls their early days at Memphis Recording Service, the wild tours, tangling with Col. Tom Parker, making Hollywood films, and Elvis’ historic 1968 Comeback Special. Scotty’s pioneering guitar work on Presley’s records inspired a generation of great guitar slingers. This is Scotty Moore’s personal, inside story of the man – and the music – that set the world on fire.
The author signed his latest book for me!
John, Paul & Me Before the Beatles: The True Story of the Very Early Days
This is a true life story account of Len Garry’s childhood memories of his childhood days spent with John Lennon and Paul McCartney and the forming of the band The Quarrymen. Also the day John Lennon met Paul McCartney for the very first time at St. Peter’s Church fete on 6th July 1957, this book is a first hand account of what took place on that day plus more stories.
The Beatles Digest- Contributions (under the pen name J.G. Schuberk)
Coming Next Year: A mystery about an early John Lennon guitar. Was it his? Did he use it to write early Beatles songs with Paul McCartney? Did he steal it? Where did he hide it? What happened to it, and where is it today?
I have never been disappointed with a Jim Berkenstadt book. You always will learn NEW and exciting information in his titles and that is the ultimate litmus test for me in determining the value of any book dealing with popular music and culture.
Solving mysteries is his specialty and the readers of his books are the beneficiaries of his hard work and dedication to excellence!
TERRY CRAIN’S NEW BOOK TITLE “BEATLES NOVELTY SONGS” IS AVAILABLE NOW:
BEATLES NOVELTY SONGS 1964-1966
A mammoth and comprehensive book featuring the Beatles novelty records issued between 1964-1966 is now available. You will be delighted and amazed with all of the stories associated with the 500 or so records that are detailed here! Once again, author Terry Crain has created a research work that represents a much-needed addition to the Beatles book library as it helps to demonstrate how deeply the Beatles permeated popular culture and society. Novelty records helped to do that with a sense of humor (humour) which was important to the Beatles repertoire of talents
The endorsement to Terry’s wonderful research skills is summed up by one of the best in the business. You can view it at the bottom of the rear cover of the new book:
A FEW SAMPLE PAGES FROM THE BOOK:
One of my favorite entries in the Terry Crain book:The 500 songs in the book are presented in alphabetical order but I have chosen one of my favorite entries in the book as a sampling of what you will see in the pages of this wonderful piece of work by Terry Crain.
The Ringo I Love You track, written and produced by Phil Spector and sung by Bonnie Jo Mason (aka Cher)!
That was a sampling of the type of stories that you will read about in Terry Crain’s spectacular new book!
Proud to have received a wonderful acknowledgement by the author in his book. Much appreciated, Terry! It is so nice to have the name mentioned amongst such luminaries in the Beatles
Credits:
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
A NOTE OF THANKS TO THE AUTHOR:
Thanks, Terry, for the wonderful inscription in your excellent book!Please don’t forget the sequel featuring the novelty records post 1966!You are the only person I would ever trust with producing that book!
Hope you enjoyed this sampling of Terry’s wonderful new book. Now it is your turn to make the decision to acquire and purchase a copy from the author. You will not be disappointed!!!
The newest book in the wild and wacky Beatles genre is “Beatles Novelty Songs (1964-1966).” Songwriters wrote about 500 Beatles novelty songs between 1964 and 1966. Every subject, every situation, every holiday, every heartfelt longing, and every social issue seemed to be covered by these wonderful songs.
