Coleman interviews the Beatles

Beatles return to Britain Saturday 2 February, 1964 Live on Grandstand

It was a cold February morning, and grey leaden skies hung above London airport, but the legion of fans who had gathered to welcome their heroes home didn't seem to notice.

They had come from all over the country, some camping overnight, to get a glimpse of the biggest band this country - and arguably the world - had ever seen.

It was Beatles mania - and it was on Grandstand.

As a sports presenter, David Coleman wasn't used to standing in the middle of an airport at seven in the morning, surrounded by hundreds of screaming girls - but he seemed remarkably comfortable with the whole situation.

Opening the programme from the airport's observation platform, Coleman described the scene around him.

"This is perhaps the most sought-after Grandstand in Britain today," he said.

"A Boeing 707 is expected here at any moment, and in it are four remarkable young men from Liverpool: Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison.

"Awaiting them will be the kind of reception and sound that matches even their own captivating beat, with many of the gathered fans having been here all night in temparatures that have dipped below freezing."

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Coleman gave up talking when the fab four landed, such was the noise.

As they left the plane the air was filled with the hysterical screams of delight from thousands of girls and boys - with the police doing well to keep the surging crowd from the plane.

The band had left Britain for America late in 1963, knowing that success in the States was key if they had global ambitions.

Unsurprisingly they proved a hit - but when asked by Coleman whether they were pleased to be back, the answer was a resounding YES!

"Our reception here was amazing," said Ringo Starr, "It's so early in the morning, most of these people must just have got up!"

When asked about their thoughts on America, Ringo observed that it was "bigger", but the others were slightly more forthcoming.

"It was a marvellous place, we loved it," Paul McCartney said.

"You don't play theatres over there, you play stadiums. We played in the Carnegie Hall and a stadium in Washington, which were enormous, with people all around."

"And the acoustics were terrible!" George Harrison added.

One of the highlights for the four - apart from a fan cutting half of Ringo's hair off at an official reception - was meeting Muhammad Ali, or Cassius Clay as he was then known, when the heavyweight was nearing the peak of his powers.

They were, to a man, visibly impressed with the boxer.

"He's a big man, but he's a great laugh, more than anything," McCartney said, with Harrision remarking that he thought Clay would knock out Sonny Liston (his next opponent) in three rounds.

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"He told us, I's bootifull and you's bootifull too!" Lennon added.

Never one to beat about the bush when going for the jugular would do, Coleman then asked what plans they had to reclaim a spot in the Top 10, having dropped out for the first time in their career.

"What do you suggest?" McCartney asked, "John's going to go into the Old Vic, I'm trying tap-dancing and Ringo is doing comedy on the highway."

It was not, of course, the end of the Beatles, who amongst others went on to release Rubber Soul in 1965, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967 and Let It Be in 1970.

But it was probably one of the hardest interviews Coleman had to do on Grandstand, simply because the Beatles were four of the most cheeky, irreverent and amusing chaps around at the time.

As Coleman observed back in the safe confines of the studio: "You don't interview the Beatles, you just play straight-man."

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