Tell Me Why | British-born author Tony Broadbent answers The Big Question
Q | WHY WRITE A MYSTERY STORY ABOUT THE BEATLES?
A | The story of The Beatles is certainly one of the great folk tales of our time—more than worthy of being conceived as a grand opera or great film—so archetypal are the iconic moments and story elements. The innocents on a quest, their hopes and dreams, the un-looked for guide, the worldly-wise teacher, the heroes and villains encountered along the way, a string of early failures, followed by unimaginable success, the loves and losses, the rise and fall, the deaths and seeming resurrection. The myths. Hidden truths. And, of course, a legend that just grows and grows.
The necessary talents to compose an opera—grand, soap, or rock—having completely eluded me—but having successfully published a series of historical-mystery novels and one or two well-received short stories—I chose instead to re-tell a tiny part of The Beatles' story in the form of a novel that incorporated a number of 'mystery elements' based on actual recorded events.
The One After 9:09 begins almost at the very beginning of it all—in Liverpool—a few months after ‘the boys’—as Brian Epstein always called them—have recently returned from their first trip to Hamburg and are beginning to take Merseyside by storm. Particularly on one Saturday night—the 11th March 1961—when The Beatles are booked to play an 'all-nighter' at the Iron Door Club, for rock 'n' roll mad local promoter, Sam Leach. And from events that unfold there, that night, we go on a two year journey with The Beatles and meet all sorts of people who were involved with them up until Saturday, January 19th 1963, when the band make their very first appearance on national television, miming to their latest record, 'Please Please Me' on one of the country's top pop-music shows, 'Thank Your Lucky Stars'. After which—the seeds of Beatlemania having been well and truly sown—up and down the length and breadth of Britain—the rest, as they say, is history.
I still thank my lucky stars I was there to see and enjoy The Beatles—live—on numerous occasions—when I was a teenager growing up, just outside London. I find their story—and the many examples to be drawn from their lives and work—still so very compelling—and enriching. And I just hope other people feel the same as I do.
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