Who are The Bootleg Beatles? The story of the ultimate tribute to the Fab Four

28 June 2025, 12:10

The Bootleg Beatles have played more live shows than the real thing.

Be it in Las Vegas, Tokyo or Blackpool Pier, you can't move for Elvis Presley impersonators.

The Beatles aren't quite so famous for copycats, but there are still plenty of tribute acts around.

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One of the best is The Analogues, who don't mess around with moptop wigs or Sgt Pepper outfits and instead focus entirely on sounding exactly like the Fab Four, bringing songs they never played in concert to life.

But the ultimate Beatles tribute will always be The Bootleg Beatles.

Since they were formed, the band have been around for 45 years (35 more than the actual Beatles), and have played over 4,000 live shows (John, Paul, George and Ringo played less than 1,500 together).

The Bootleg Beatles 2025 showreel

First with Wings and then as a solo star, the real Paul McCartney has been touring nonstop since The Beatles split, helping to keep the flame alive. So has Ringo Starr, usually with his All Starr Band.

Even before their tragic deaths in 1980 and 2001, John Lennon and George Harrison barely performed live since the split. So there's long been a gap to fill for fans eager to hear The Beatles songs live in concert.

The Bootleg Beatles stepped up. Here's all you need to know about The Fake Four.

When were The Bootleg Beatles formed and who was in their first lineup?

The Bootleg Beatles formed in 1980, with the original lineup being cast members of West End cast of Beatlemania, a successful Broadway musial that had racked up over 1,000 performances.

The tagline for the production was "Not the Beatles, but an incredible simulation", which is a perfect lead in to a tribute band.

The founding members were Beatlemania's Andre Barreau (George Harrison), Neil Harrison (John Lennon), and David Catlin-Birch (Paul McCartney), along with Jack Lee Elgood (Ringo Starr).

They invested in some classic gear to make sure they looked the part (polo necks and wigs), and more importantly sound the part (Epiphone and Gretsch guitars and classic Vox amps).

A bit of trivia for you: Barreau played the slide guitar on Robbie Williams smash 'Angels'.

Who has been in The Bootleg Beatles over the years?

The advantage of not being the real thing is that if anyone leaves a band, you can stick any other player in a polo neck and a wig and no-one will really care, as long as they're talented enough.

The Bootleg Beatles have had a few lineup changes over the years, though not as many as you might think.

"John" became Adam Hastings, then Tyson Kelly and – since 2024 – Paul Canning

"Paul" was played by Paul Cooper, before Catlin-Birch took back the role and, since 2012 has been Steve White

"George" has had less change, with Stephen Hill taking over in 2014

"Ringo" has been Rick Rock, Hugo Degenhardt, and since 2016, Gordon Elsmore.

Did The Beatles ever meet The Bootleg Beatles and what did they think of them?

Bootleg Beatles Promo Video

Sadly John Lennon was murdered before The Bootleg Beatles really took off, but there were certainly interactions between the group and other members.

In 1996, Pink Floyd's David Gilmour booked The Bootleg Beatles and The Australian Pink Floyd to play his 50th birthday party joking that he "always wanted to have The Beatles support Pink Floyd".

In the audience for that performance was none other than George Harrison (the actual George Harrison).

"You probably know the chords better than I do," he quipped, which given how rarely he played his songs live might well have been true.

He cheekily added: "Where's the Bootleg Brian Epstein? 'Cos he's got all the money!"

And in 2002, they shared a bill with Paul McCartney when both artists performed at the Party at the Palace for the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II.

What were The Bootleg Beatles biggest live shows?

For whatever reason, The Bootleg Beatles weren't an immediate success in their native UK.

Their initial fame came abroad with tours of places the original Fab Four never played. They played a 60-date tour of the Soviet Union (The Beatles were unofficially banned by the authorities when they were around), as well as dates in Israel and India.

They also played shows in the Far East and, in 1984 celebrated the 20th anniversary of The Beatles breakthrough US tour with their own shows.

Day Tripper - The Bootleg Beatles

Still, they weren't getting much attention back home, till they played a fateful 10-date tour in 1990 in cities The Beatles had played on their own final UK tour in 1965.

It was a show in Southampton that caught the attention of Beatles superfans Oasis, who promptly booked them to support them not just at Earl's Court in 1995 but also the era-defining Knebworth Park the following year.

That helped them break through in the UK and they played other special shows over the years as well as their tours in pretty decent sized venues.

They played on the rooftop of 3 Savile Row, London on January 30, 1999 as a nod to The Beatles' own last live public performance at the same place 30 years earlier.

There were the aforementioned performances at David Gilmour's birthday and the 2002 Party at the Palace, and also they collaborated with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra to perform Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band at the Royal Albert Hall and Echo Arena in Liverpool in 2017.

Over the years they've also become something of a fixture on the acoustic stage at the Glastonbury Festival, popping up a number of times including the last three years in a row.