From Fore Abbey to Abbey Road

In 1963, two young sisters from Fore, who had got themselves jobs at the Astoria Cinema in Finsbury Park, London were taken to one side and asked to come in early the next morning. They were not told why and they didn't think to ask.Little did the sisters know that they were about to be captured forever in a piece of photographic cultural history.Eithne and Úna Flood, from Sallymount, Fore, were about to have their photo taken by Terence Spencer, with an up-and-coming young band from Liverpool, The Beatles, for the world-famous Life magazine, as part of a special photo essay on The Beatles.Just two months later, The Beatles would kick of their now historic and triumphant tour of the States, Beatlemania would sweep the world and London would take its place at the heart of a cultural revolution that crowned it the hottest, hippest place on the entire planet.Spencer recalls the shoot saying, "Their lives were about to be transformed beyond all expectations, including their own, They really hadn't taken in what was happening to them,"The sisters were equally unfazed by the photoshoot, Eithne Flood, who became Eithne Healy, now runs the popular Bed and Breakfast business Hounslow House, said she wasn't overwhelmed by the appearance of the Beatles."We just came in early like we were asked and took part in the shoot. There were a number of great acts in the Astoria that year. While I liked the Beatles I wasn't a mad fan but it was great and a lovely experience," Eithne describes."I do remember that they once said that they loved Jelly Babies and so every night, their fans would shower the stage with Jelly Babies."These days, Eithne plays down her pop culture moment and instead enjoys a much older history, that of her homeplace. The drawing room, which looks out across the valley of Fore, is like a library, filled with books for guests to read all about Fore.The photograph containing Eithne and her sister Una was then used again in 1994, as the front cover of a book "It was Thirty Years Ago Today", which contained a series of Spencer's Beatles photographs, which had resurfaced.These photos were a collection of intimate, backstage shots taken when Spencer travelled with the band for four months in 1963/1964 which present an uninhibited portrait of The Beatles just as they exploded onto the world stage.The Beatles were part of a Variety Show designed by Brian Epstein, that ran at the Astoria Cinema in Finsbury Park, London for 16 nights around Christmas 1963.The tickets went on sale on 21 October 1963, and by 16 November all 100,000 had sold out.There were 30 shows altogether and Beatles fans were also entertained by the Barron Knights and Duke Diamond. Tommy Quickly and The Fourmost, and Billy J Kramer and The Dakotas as well as Liverbird singing sensation Cilla Black and Oz legend Rolf Harris.The Beatles closed each night with a 25 minute set which included Roll Over Beethoven, All My Loving, This Boy, I Wanna Be Your Man, She Loves You, Till There Was You, I Want To Hold Your Hand, Money (That's What I Want) and Twist And Shout.The Beatles also took to the stage for a number of light-hearted skits, that gave the night a real panto feel but didn't raise them any great acclaim as either comedians or actors.