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By the 1963 Christmas season, The Beatles were already the biggest musical stars in the history of British entertainment. So the boys were asked to star in The Beatles Christmas Shows at the Astoria Cinema in Finsbury Park, London. The Christmas shows had been arranged by the band s manager, Brian Epstein, and featured several of his other acts, including Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Tommy Quickly, and Cilla Black. These shows were, quite possibly, the oddest performances of The Beatles s career.
The Christmas shows began on Christmas Eve 1963. Then, The Beatles were all flown home to their families to celebrate Christmas the next day. After that, the Christmas shows continued through January 11, 1964. The shows completely sold out 100,000 tickets sold like hotcakes. Financially, the shows were a guaranteed smash hit. But on an artistic level, well, that was another story.