Being embedded with Beatles a real battle for Bob Rogers in 1964

BEATLEMANIA ... not again please! When 2SM sent me to England to travel with the Beatles, no one realised what lay in store - including, I suspect, the Beatles.

Bob Rogers Beatles

BEATLEMANIA ... not again please! When 2SM sent me to England to travel with the Beatles, no one realised what lay in store - including, I suspect, the Beatles.

I realised early that the tour had nothing to do with the music. No one could hear the Beatles at any of the concerts. It had to do with screaming multitudes. What is it about teenage girls that makes them go berserk over their idols?

Almost 50 years later girls are no different to those of the '60s. Do some of them still invade hotels hoping to meet their idols?

In 1960, arts student Jenny Kee met John Lennon at the start of the madness we came to know as Beatlemania. Weeks later, John asked me to make sure this young lady got through security so he could say goodbye. When said young lady became a successful fashion designer, I smiled wryly to myself. Imagine my surprise when, 20 years later, I read a newspaper article headlined "Jenny Kee says 'I Slept With John Lennon'."

For myself I cannot speak highly enough of my relationship with the boys. We had a commitment to do a daily interview on 2SM from every city.

We were all prisoners of their success and none of us imagined how profound their influence on the world of entertainment would continue to be.

Bob Rogers is a veteran radio host, currently with 2CH