Just when you thought you couldn’t love the Beatles anymore, they prove you wrong. The fact that the Beatles continue to deliver us more media creates a timeless quality that I don’t think any other band or musical artist has been able to match. It’s to the point where new waves of fans are continually developing, creating a unique momentum behind a culture that transcends generations. From a personal perspective, watching the famous Anthology documentary for the first time continues to develop my connection to the band, the music, and the members. I’ve found myself pondering this unlikely relationship between artist and fan, feeling like there is nothing quite like it. Being exposed to a new level of firsthand recollection, the fan-artist relationship feels more personal than ever. It’s like we know them as really good friends. That’s an incredibly special connection to have with four men of such fame and notoriety. It sounds a bit out there, but those who follow the fab four closely will understand this phenomenon.
The Anthology documentary was re-issued on Disney+ on the 26th of November 2025. The series itself is split up into nine episodes, each clocking in around 50-60mins in length, with an additional ninth episode of previously unseen footage of George, Ringo and Paul reuniting in studio. This new final episode chronicles their effort to revitalise John’s demos of ‘Now and Then’, ‘Free as a Bird’ and ‘Real Love’, into fully fledged Beatles songs. Similarly to the Anthology albums, the documentary highlights all the nooks and crannies of their epic career. The docuseries reveal countless intricacies of their journey, and the quality of these tidbits often adds bright colour and personality to the story. This series has become a masterclass in documenting a musical act, through it’s unique exclusive use of the artists perspective with no voiceover or outside narrator. It is also unique because of the volume of content that illustrates the Liverpool lads. I suppose it’s a reflection of the fact that a band with such influence naturally gets more cameras rolling, which lends itself to everything being documented more thoroughly.
The Beatles’ Anthology reissue arrives in harmony with a few other key releases, including a direct follow-up to Anthology 4, an aptly titled fourth installment of the compilation albums from the 90s. This fresh release uncovers newly mixed versions of previous demos and select studio takes, as well as 13 previously unreleased tracks of the same nature. This collection breathes new life into the Beatles’ strong canon of musical fanfare. A pandora’s box of songs that chronicles the band’s entire lifetime, from baroque pop to avant garde. But that’s not all, Paul McCartney himself has doubled down on the anthology trend and released WINGS (Deluxe) to celebrate his historically uncertain venture into the post-Beatles era that has only turned him into a multi-decade spanning songwriting supernova. This is set to be later paired with a completely new documentary on Paul’s post-Beatles era as well. And finally, we had Ringo Starr’s commercially successful foray into the modern country scene, with his own solo album Look Up, released earlier this year. All this coming in quick succession provides a very immediate reminder of the breadth of talent and cultural influence the Beatles have had on society – remaining ever so relevant today.
There has been a growing New Zealand link with all this Beatles activity over the last few years, which makes this even more enjoyable as a Kiwi follower. WingNut Films and Sir Peter Jackson were once again the archeologists who’ve restored and remastered new life into the moving images of this historic band. Straight from the same technology that allowed the team to restore the grainy Get Back footage from the 2023 docuseries, the team felt it was an organic follow-on to restore Anthology, 30 years after it was originally released. Of course, this continual release of Beatles content can’t be infinite, but I think what time and technology has allowed us is novel spaces to appreciate their output with fresh eyes and ears.
Highlights are almost too much to mention, just due to the sheer number of intricate anecdotes and candid moments that otherwise go unnoticed or unappreciated. Just when you think you’ve seen it all on Instagram or Pinterest, there is another image or clip that you’ve never seen. It’s truly an insight. The Beatles’ lore expands into a rich breadth through this docuseries. To the point of learning things like the origins of the band’s name. It came to John Lennon in a vision, a message from a man on a flaming pie, supposedly telling him the band name should be ‘The Beetles’, with an ‘a’. Embarrassingly, I didn’t know this piece of information, but then again, how wonderful that light has been shone on this fact for those who weren’t aware – enriching our understanding. It’s these types of recollections that make the series worth watching, as everyone will find something new to admire.
Of course it would be remiss not to appreciate the audio quality of the newly remastered series. Giles Martin (George Martin’s son) ensures we hear all the bells and whistles when numbers are overlaid atop of the various montages. This is particularly of note when contemporaries would often criticize the ‘tinny-ness’ of the earlier records. Another major highlight is seeing the candid final jam session of the trio that remained in the mid-90s, during the original recording of this series. It is a pensive and real moment, that reflects an overarching narrative, that at the end of the day, this cultural movement was produced by four guys who had their challenges like the rest of us. They’re absolutely human, with complex relationships between one another, but ultimately friends. As emotionally charged as that last additional episode is, George sums it up lovely for us. He muses about the likelihood that the Beatles will just go on and on, in people’s minds, memories, films, books; and in the end, the band will go on without the four of them. This is such an honest and beautiful reflection of what they’ve given the world.
Overall, Anthology is an incredibly abundant collection of moments, solidifying Beatlemania as a genuine phenomenon still thriving today. Cleverly depicting one of the most turbulent and progressive decades in history and ironically reflecting it back to now. It seems the Beatles are as relevant in 1963 as they are today in 2025. This same effect occurred in 1995 when the documentary was originally released, so, clearly their music and cultural connection don’t have an end in sight, and that is quite the feat. How lucky are we to have lived after the Beatles, and not before.
The Beatles Anthology series is available to watch on Disney+ now and you can shop the Anthology collection from JB Hi-Fi here.
