Several weeks after George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Pete Best and John Lennon had returned to England from Germany, Stuart Sutcliffe flew back on this day.
Harrison had been deported on 21 November, followed by McCartney and Best nine days later. Lennon travelled back alone on 10 December, while Sutcliffe went into temporary hiding with Astrid Kirchherr in Hamburg.
Sutcliffe knew he couldn’t stay indefinitely after his bandmates had been deported, and on this day he flew back to Liverpool. Kirchherr bought him an aeroplane ticket as he was suffering from tonsillitis and she didn’t want him to travel by ferry.
Last updated: 28 December 2012
Also on this day...
- 2014: UK release: The US Albums
- 2013: McCartney demo of A World Without Love is unveiled
- 1990: Paul McCartney live: Wembley Arena, London
- 1988: The Beatles are inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame
- 1982: Paul McCartney appears on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs
- 1970: John Lennon and Yoko Ono have their hair cropped in Denmark
- 1969: The Beatles meet at Apple’s basement studio
- 1967: Recording: A Day In The Life
- 1965: Ringo Starr proposes to Maureen Cox
- 1964: The Beatles live: Olympia Theatre, Paris
- 1964: US album release: Meet The Beatles!
- 1963: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (evening)
- 1962: The Beatles live: Cavern Club, Liverpool (evening)
- 1961: The Beatles live: Lathom Hall, Liverpool
Want more? Visit the Beatles history section.