Beatle Weddings: George & Pattie
In the film, Help (1965) The Beatles live together in the heart of Swinging London. Their groovy terraced townhouse has four separate front doors but these open out into a single fun palace.
Unsurprisingly, this bohemian arrangement bears little resemblance to their real lives. All four have WAGS — wives or girlfriends. John and Ringo are now married. Paul seems to be in all but name.
Only Paul qualifies as a swinging Londoner. Until recently he has been a lodger with the family of Jane Asher, who everyone assumes he will eventually marry. His new house, in Cavendish Square, is still within walking distance of Abbey Road.
The others rattle around in mansions in suburban Surrey. And it is in Epsom, the heart of the stockbroker belt, where George Harrison becomes the third of the Fab Four to marry.
The wedding between George and Pattie Boyd is held on 21st January 1966. The couple had met a on the set of A Hard Day’s Night at which point Pattie had been a 20-year-old fashion model. It follows the now familiar template, with subtle variations.
Two band members — John and Ringo — send their apologies. Both are curiously ‘on holiday’. Ringo and Mo have just flown off to the West Indies from where and phone their congratulations after the ceremony — an unheard of luxury at this time. Paul is promoted to best man above Brian.
The guarded attitude towards the press shown at the Ringo/Mo wedding has now hardened. The arrangement is strictly private, with only close family and friends in attendance at Epsom Registry Office. There is an early morning start in a (vain) attempt to avoid fans and photographers.
An ‘eyewitness account’ by The Beatles press officer, Tony Barrow, shapes the media narrative.
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There is also a marked change in how The Beatles are interacting with the public. Whereas Cyn and Mo were Liverpool natives, Pattie is an established London model from a new, more socially elevated circle.
There is animus from some fans against the new ‘posh girls’. Patty would later describe the experience of being a Beatle girlfriend/wife as being ‘absolutely terrifying’. After one concert:
They followed us out, pushing us all the way down this long passageway. They were kicking me and pulling my hair. Read more
All but a tiny minority abhor such behaviour. But there is a wider feeling that the The Beatles are drifting away from their roots to embrace a remote world of wealth, celebrity and haute couture:
I bought a Mary Quant pinky-red shot-silk dress, which came to just above the knee, and I wore it with creamy stockings and pointy red shoes. On top, because it was January and cold, I wore a red fox-fur coat, also by Mary Quant, that George gave me. She made George a beautiful black Mongolian lamb coat.
Not so private
Attempts to make the wedding a private affair have limited success.
We came out into the street to find dozens of press photographers lined up outside. So much for keeping the whole thing secret.
The bride and groom are chauffeur driven away from the registry office in a gold Rolls-Royce. The next day they give a press conference before flying off for a honeymoon in Barbados.
George comes across as a little rakish and proprietorial, and there are awkward references to Patti being a ‘schoolgirl’ when the couple met on the set of A Hard Day’s Night.
Patti is entering a gilded cage. Much later, she would admit:
It was not the wedding I had dreamt of. I would have loved to be married in church, but Brian didn’t want a big fuss… He also said it had to be secret.
John, George, Paul and Ringo are now the most famous men in the world. There is no possibility of any of them getting married without a ‘big fuss’.
* I Married a Beatle: Ringo & Mo *Paul & Linda *John and Cynthia * The Long and Winding Road * The Ballad of John & Yoko
