7 – 9 May
Our insatiable appetite for music biopics shows no sign of abating. Following the success of a slew of cinematic tributes (Bohemian Rhapsody for Queen, A Complete Unknown for Bob Dylan, Rocketman for Elton John, Back to Black for Amy Winehouse and the recent Michael for the Prince of Pop, to name but a few), while the first edition of Sam Mendes’ ambitious four-film festival celebrating The Beatles will hit cinema screens in April 2028 with a stellar cast and high expectations. And perhaps it will need all four films to do justice to the Fab Four, the biggest selling musical group of all time (with an estimated 600 million records sold), and arguably the most influential.
If just under two years is too long to wait, in the meantime we at least have Come Together. We are, if we are honest, all fans of the Beatles, and this fusion of live concert and affectionate homage to, and tale of, the most successful songwriting duo in musical history is not just so much more than a musical tribute act – it seems almost an insult to use that term – it is a unique piece of theatre in its own right. Written by and starring Tom Connor (as Paul McCartney) and Mark Newnham (as John Lennon), Come Together premiered at no lesser venue than Liverpool’s Royal Court to rave reviews in March 2024. Revived for this year, how would the show be received by an arguably less partisan audience 145 miles further south in Cheltenham, in the show’s first ever performances outside of The Beatles’ home city?
Tonight’s double standing ovation provided an emphatic answer. A hugely talented Connor is uncannily like McCartney, from his distinctive voice to his eerily similar physiognomy and his recognisable mannerisms. Newnham turns in an admirable reincarnation of a youthful Lennon too, but these two performers are more than simply impressive impersonators. Infusing their depiction of this iconic duo with humour, warmth and a touching affection they narrate the tale of their songwriting partnership, from their first meeting at a fateful fête at St Peter’s Church in 1957, through the Beatles’ residencies in Hamburg in the early 1960s, right up to their final live performance on the roof of the Apple Corps building in Savile Row in January 1969, presented here through some clever staging. There is an easy, infectious chemistry between the two leads, confidently ad-libbing in response to some very good-natured heckling and hinting at a professional relationship that dates all the way back to Lennon, a 2013 musical in which both were cast in the same two roles, ones which they have come more to inhabit than simply perform.
As musicians too, they are prodigiously talented, switching seamlessly between multiple instruments, often within the same song. They are joined by four other, equally impressive performers – Ben Gladwin (keyboards and percussion), Greg Joy (drums), Adam Keast (bass) and Mike Woodvine on lead guitar – in a comprehensive repertoire of over thirty Beatles numbers spanning eleven years. As with most music concerts these days, there is a strong visual element too, a multimedia projection onto the backcloth combining retro graphics, song lyrics and photos from the Beatles’ 60s heyday to add an authentic period feel.
All of these elements combine to produce a highly impressive and unique fusion of theatrical performance and musical concert. Yet it is a concert which is, in this reviewer’s humble opinion, one of the closest experiences to seeing the Fab Four live.
★★★★☆. Tony Clarke, 8 May, 2026
Photography credit: Andrew AB Photography
