Beatlemania

Gruff Rhys attempts to understand crowd behaviour in order to free the audience from the tyranny of the artist, and free all people from all leaders.

Gruff begins his quest with a pilgrimage to a phonebox in Bangor, where The Beatles heard of Brian Epstein's death, and in which he used to sleep.

Once he finds the phonebox, Gruff will call his guests:

* Professor of Social Psychology Stephen Reicher

* Dr Jenny Boyd, psychologist and author, who was there on that legendary trip to Bangor in 1967 with The Beatles, Marianne Faithfull, The Rolling Stones and the Maharishi.

Through the lens of Beatlemania and pop culture, Gruff and his guests will attempt to answer important questions such as:

* Do we really get a sense of well being when we share time and space with others, when we are part of a group, or an audience?

* What happens when the crowd turns? Why does it take 5 trains to go from Cardiff to Bangor?

Producer: John Norton

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2020.