Beatles movie Midas Man filming in Blackpool with Hollywood and Netflix stars

The Swinging Sixties returned to Blackpool this week as film crews shot scenes for a new movie about the man who gave us the biggest band in history.
By Matthew Calderbank
Published 11th May 2023, 12:15 BST
Updated 16th May 2023, 07:42 BST
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Sixty-two years ago, British music entrepreneur Brian Epstein descended the stairs to a cellar in Liverpool and discovered The Fab Four. The world would never be quite the same again.

This week, film crews and stars of the big screen descended on Blackpool as the clock was turned back six decades for a Hollywood biopic on the man behind Beatlemania.

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Caunce Street was closed to the public on Tuesday while crews transformed the road and shop fronts into a bustling Liverpool street scene set in the 50s.

A row of Art Deco-style buildings between Cookson Street and Church Street were used to recreate the Epstein family's Liverpool shop, which sold furniture, musical instruments and household appliances. Picture credit: Barry McCannA row of Art Deco-style buildings between Cookson Street and Church Street were used to recreate the Epstein family's Liverpool shop, which sold furniture, musical instruments and household appliances. Picture credit: Barry McCann
A row of Art Deco-style buildings between Cookson Street and Church Street were used to recreate the Epstein family's Liverpool shop, which sold furniture, musical instruments and household appliances. Picture credit: Barry McCann

A row of Art Deco-style buildings between Cookson Street and Church Street were used to recreate the Epstein family’s shop, which sold furniture, musical instruments and household appliances.

Filming will continue in Caunce Street today and tomorrow (Friday, May 12).

In addition to Blackpool, filming has also taken place in London, Liverpool, and Los Angeles.

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What is the film called and who's in it?

Caunce Street in Blackpool was closed to the public on Tuesday (May 9) while film crews transformed the road into a bustling Liverpool street scene set in the 1950s. Picture credit: Harry HulmeCaunce Street in Blackpool was closed to the public on Tuesday (May 9) while film crews transformed the road into a bustling Liverpool street scene set in the 1950s. Picture credit: Harry Hulme
Caunce Street in Blackpool was closed to the public on Tuesday (May 9) while film crews transformed the road into a bustling Liverpool street scene set in the 1950s. Picture credit: Harry Hulme

The movie is Midas Man: The Brian Epstein Story and features British stars Emily Watson and Eddie Marsan, along with 35-year-old Jacob Fortune-Lloyd in the lead role (he has previously starred in Netflix drama The Queen’s Gambit and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker).

It also stars American chat show host and comedian Jay Leno in the shoes of US television host Ed Sullivan who booked the Beatles to appear for the first time on US television in February 1964.

Their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show became the most-watched programme in TV history with a record-breaking 73 million viewers tuning in to watch the Fab Four – a watershed moment that launched American Beatlemania.

What’s it about?

The Beatles on a visit to Blackpool for a concert at the Opera House on August 16, 1964The Beatles on a visit to Blackpool for a concert at the Opera House on August 16, 1964
The Beatles on a visit to Blackpool for a concert at the Opera House on August 16, 1964

Midas Man is a biographical film about music entrepreneur Brian Epstein who famously managed The Beatles and led them to superstardom.

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The film tracks how Brian Epstein rose to prominence by managing a series of popular artists including Cilla Black and Gerry and the Pacemakers before his tragic death in 1967 at the age of 32.

It spans a period of extraordinary cultural change and charts Epstein’s rise from the desolate streets of wartime Liverpool to the psychedelic haze of London’s Abbey Road.

When will it be released?

Midas Man does not currently have a release date.

The film was due to be released this year but production was halted in 2022 after Swedish director Jonas Åkerlund – a Grammy Award winning music video director – took a break from the film before quitting the production altogether.

He has since been replaced by British director Joe Stephenson.

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The Fab Four on the Fylde Coast

For more on the Fab Four in Blackpool and Fleetwood, take a look at our nostalgia features below.

- When Blackpool missed out on a full summer season with The Beatles because the producer had 'never heard of them'

- The day The Beatles rock and rolled into Fleetwood

- Days of casual chats with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr in Blackpool

Related topics:BlackpoolLiverpoolHollywoodNetflixEddie MarsanBeatles