Why The Beatles’ ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ Film Flopped
TL;DR:
- Paul McCartney felt The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour failed because it premiered the day after Christmas.
- Paul said fans wanted to watch television host Bruce Forsyth instead of The Beatles on that day.
- The soundtrack of the movie was was more popular in the United States than in the United Kingdom.
Paul McCartney primarily directed The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour television film. He revealed why the movie was credited to The Beatles. In addition, Paul offered a theory about why the movie flopped.
Why The Beatles’ ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ was credited to every member of the band
In the 2015 book Conversations with McCartney, Paul discussed the origin of the film Magical Mystery Tour. “I somehow ended up as the guy who was gonna get it all together, ring ’em, book ’em,” he said. “Everyone seemed happy to let me do it, I don’t think anyone else wanted the bother.”
However, the film is credited to “The Beatles” rather than to Paul alone. He said he allowed this to happen because being the sole credited director of the film was an ego trip he didn’t want.
Subsequently, Paul said Magical Mystery Tour flopped because it premiered on television on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas. “What happened is that we totally presented it in the wrong way,” he said. “We had it on Boxing Day, in the traditional Bruce Forsyth slot — you know — which is everyone sitting there after Christmas, just recovering from the piss-up the night before. ‘Uh, what’s on there?’ It’s Brucie: ‘Bring me sunshine … Hey! Having a good Boxing Day?'” For context, Forsyth was a famous television host.
Paul McCartney had to deal with the anger that The Beatles made a flop movie
Paul said the Magical Mystery Tour movie wasn’t what audiences wanted at the time. “But instead it was ‘Maagicalll Mystereee Tooour … Hey maan,’ with eggheads and everything,” he said. “People were up in arms. ‘Beatles’ bomb flops!‘ Terrible.”
Paul had to deal with the film’s failure in front of others. “They came round to my house the next day,” he recalled. “‘What did you think then, Paul?’ ‘Oh, I don’t know, I thought it was rather good.’ Ha! Tried to bluff my way out. I took it in the neck, cos I had kind of directed it.” Paul later wrote the screenplay for another flop: 1984’s Give My Regards to Broad Street. Like Magical Mystery Tour, Give My Regards to Broad Street is a musical.
How the ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ LP performed in the United States and the United Kingdom
Regardless of the film’s performance, the LP Magical Mystery Tour was a big hit. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for eight weeks. Magical Mystery Tour lasted 93 weeks on the chart.
On the other hand, Magical Mystery Tour was a modest hit in the United Kingdom. According to The Official Charts Company, the album reached No. 31 in the U.K. and stayed on the chart for 10 weeks.
Magical Mystery Tour was a flop movie but it still had an impact on the musical landscape.
