Historical Events  Music
Scott's Porage

Alternate:
The Beatles split up in the late 1960s

Current:
The Beatles split up in the early 1970s

The long and winding road came to an end

When exactly did The Beatles split up?

Most people say the late 1960's, and some say the early 1970's. It turns out the truth is a little more complicated than either of those. For a start, if we're talking officially then it's 1975. That's because there was a long and drawn out court battle which wasn't settled until that date - January 9th, 1975.

The generally accepted break-up date isn't so clear either, because it wasn't a single event but more of a series of separate acts. The last time they played live together was from the rooftop of the Apple building in Saville Row, London, in January 1969,  the last time they recorded together was in August 1969, and the last time they were all in the same room together was September 1969. By then the cracks in the band had become too wide to repair, and they were involved in solo projects as well as already gearing up with their lawyers over contracts and recording rights. In April 1970 various press releases were issued which, whilst strongly hinting at the break up of the band, did not explicitly make it clear it had happened.

Reform offers

There were many serious offers made to the Beatles to reform in the 1970's. Some appealed directly to the members pockets, such as Bill Sargent's $10m for a single concert, an early form of crowdfunding in 1976 where fans were asked to send 1 dollar each to make it happen, right through to their hearts with a full -page ad appealing to them and offering to send the profits to support the Vietnamese Boat People. None were successful, and after John Lennons death in 1980 a reunion of the original members became impossible.