The Beatles: 6. Now and Then

In the final episode of Eras: The Beatles, we hear the story behind The Beatles' final single Now and Then, including new interviews with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.

Narrated by Martin Freeman, the episode also features insight on the new track from Sean Ono Lennon, Olivia Harrison and Peter Jackson. In 1994, Yoko Ono gave Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr a selection of unfinished demo tapes recorded by John Lennon in the 1970s. Two of those songs, Free as a Bird and Real Love, were arranged and released on 1995’s Beatles: Anthology project. A third demo was never completed. At the time, the tape was deemed too muddy to work with. But, decades later, a new machine-assisted learning programme, pioneered by Get Back director Peter Jackson and his team, made Now and Then, the final Beatles single, possible – with each Beatle performing on the track.

Listen to the story of how it came about as Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and more reflect on the decades and discuss the making of the band’s last song.