28 New Row, St Martin's Lane, WC2: The Theatre-Zoo.

MMT: IATW: FFT: Ever wondered where Ver Fabs got those deliciously creepy costumes? Eric Gledhill, that's where, and his Theatre-Zoo in WC2. Close "scritiney" of the invoice reveals the full feral "fundown" (if you will). Clockwise - Hippo, March Hare, Parrot, Walrus:

And, wouldn't yer know it, here's a film of the source, namely the Theatre-Zoo itself, dating 1956. Click on the picture to be "transpotered" to Pathe's page where ye can view the film, and thrill to the very MMT-like creepiness of the cossies:

THEATRE MASKS

Whither the titular Dyke Richens and Eric Gledhill? I know not...but I see that the Beatles only hired their costumes, which means that relatives of one or other of these aforementioned gents might just still have them...assuming they were ever returned, o' course.
(A further invoice from the Theatre-Zoo details the purchase of "17 Bald Pates (charged as 15) at 10 shillings each", destined, no doubt, for Egg-Men.)

Goo-goo-g'etc..

West Malling: then & then.

West Malling airfield exists, as regulah readahs will know, only in the memories of those who have either seen (and can recall) MMT, or those who actually managed a visit to the place before it was swallowed by Kings Hill. Piet Schreuders, a master of the old "then & nows", falls into both categories, and he has very kindly allowed me to reproduce his photos (ca. 1988) for your perusal.
Thus - above the very spot where the Walrus sequence was shot. The slight difference in perspective vis-a-vis blast walls can be explained by contrasting lenses on pre-digital cameras. Note the pavings, and compare with the following:


The circular hole, effected in MMT, still there at that time:


And, o' course, the iconic blast walls, soon to be blasted:


Piet, who was visiting in the inestimable company of Mark Lewisohn, also managed to find the "I WAS" room, situated in a small building attached to the side of one of the hangers. Astonishingly enough, the very Union Jack, if a little on the mouse-masticated side, still in place:


Note the roof beams above, and the window below:


I would have needed a hand getting it into my etc:


Finally, the hanger itself, scene of YMSK:


And this:


The presence of one of the automotive stars o' MMT means that the rather interesting BJW sequence was almost certainly filmed in here too:


...of which more anon.
Many thanks go to Piet for generously allowing his pics to be used. There's more on Malling in The Beatles' London, which you really should buy immediately if you haven't already done so.
UPDATE: Looks like MMT will finally get an official DVD release on October 9, with a side-helping of tasty extras (unseen footage etc.). It's available now for pre-order on the US Amazon site, presumably with UK and others soon to follow.
FURTHER UPDATE: Official trailer now HERE... fairly exciting stuff it is, too!

West Malling: more then & then & now.

As many as one people have written to ask where exactly in Kings Hill the MMT hanger stood. This, o' course, was the scene of the climactic Yer Mama Should etc. sequence in the titular film, but despite the excellent illustrations in The Beatles' London, pinning down its former location proved tricky; virtually nothing now remains of West Malling airfield, and, as stated in the aforementioned 'bok':"...the new roads and buildings have obliterated any sense of MMT orientation".
Well almost...but not quite. There is one surviving landmark - the old control tower, and this, together with the above newly found pic, allows a more or less accurate placing of the 'anger (should anyone care.)
There were actually four hangers at West Malling. The pics above and below were taken with the MMT hanger behind the photographer, but crucially (and that really isn't the right word) the control tower can be seen above on the right. This one is to the immediate left of the above (clear as mud, but let's plough on):


An overview - the arrow marks the spot:


This 'then & then' again shows the location - the hanger in these pics isn't the MMT one:


Had the photographer turned around, however, they'd have got the following view - the "correct" hanger (and another 'then & then'):


The MMT hanger location can thus be ascertained. The car park on the right is (more or less) the spot where John and George's vehicles can be seen in the first two pics above, the arrows point to the control tower, the circled portion corresponds to the '67 fan photo, and scanning left shows what now squats where the very hanger once...errr...also squatted, namely Queen Street in Kings Hill:


There are a number of excellent on-line resources celebrating the history of West Malling airfield (and lamenting what has become of it), and lots of interesting pics. For example these, taken on the other side of the hanger seen in the first two pics above, with the one on the left circa WW2:


So now ye know.

Dartmoor: Newbridge.

A while back, I was asked if I knew the location of the bridge that brought MMT to a halt. God, does it not, loves a visual metaphor, and thus the bus, together with attendant retinue, was famously stymied by a narrow crossway, with the whole shebang forced to reverse half a mile and try another route. (The stars in the above illustration represent expletives from les Fabs, who failed to see the funny side.)
Anyway, I was pleased to reply that I did not know the location, as to have that level of trivia at one's fingertips would represent a tragic waste of a life.
Appallingly, however, having since been unable to resist a rummage for the locale, the tragedy rumbles on: it turns out the offending arches belong to Newbridge on the edge of Dartmoor, a 15th century listed structure which is locally famous, being the subject of postcards and the like, as in this detail from one circa 1930s:


It even has its own Wikipedia entry, and though you'll find no mention of MMT, there is a link to the Coach Drivers' Handbook For The Dartmoor Area, which offers warnings of dire consequences to anyone in charge of a large (possibly multi-coloured) charabanc who doesn't carefully plan their route to avoid narrow medieval bridges.
(Readahs can now relive this episode in Beatles history from the comfort of their own hovels, via the medium of finding the bridge on Google Street view, then repeatedly pressing the reverse button whilst hurling profanity and fulmination at the screen.)

Sunny Heights: November, 1967.

The final day of filming for MMT took place in the grounds of Sunny Heights. In what was, by any standards, a pretty eccentric year in the sartorial stakes, John hit a new peak by rocking an enormous sunflower. Where did he get it from? The shot of Ringo features the by now obligatory poodle. This poodle (Tigger by name) features in at least 4 Beatles related photoshoots. I am manfully resisting the urge to do what would be a post too far, even for this blog. Thanks, yet again, to Joe Baiardi for sending some of these.