Last updated: 01 September 2009
Royal Lido Ballroom, Prestatyn
Saturday 24 November 1962
With support from Jack Ellis and the Autocrats, The Beatles performed a two-hour set at Prestatyn's Royal Lido.
Tickets cost six shillings, and The Beatles were paid a fee of £30. Prior to taking the stage the group were given a plate of jam sandwiches by the lido's head chef, Alan Veech.
Prestatyn had several links to The Beatles. Their loyal road manager Neil Aspinall was born there, and their manager Brian Epstein had temporarily lived there as a child.
A close friend of Epstein's, Joe Flannery, was in charge of booking bands for the Royal Lido, and the first act he signed up was The Beatles.
The venue, which claimed to be "North Wales' Finest Ballroom", had opened in 1960, and featured a maple dance floor. At this time The Beatles were often booked to perform in ballrooms; in later months Brian Epstein ensured they played only in theatres.
A clause in The Beatles' contract stipulated that they should not perform within a 10-mile radius of the ballroom in the 10 weeks prior to the concert.
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Local historian Harry Thomas discusses The Beatles' appearance in Prestatyn, 1962.
From the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Wales programme The Slate, February 1996.
