BBC to Produce Series 'Hamburg Days' on The Beatles

The BBC is set to revisit the era of Beatlemania with a brand-new six-part drama series titled Hamburg Days, which chronicles the Beatles formative years in the 1960s. The show has been acquired from Turbine Studios and will air on BBC One and iPlayer.

The series is developed by Benjamin Benedict, known for producing Generation War, with Jamie Carragher, who worked on Succession, as head writer. Hamburg Days draws inspiration from the autobiography of Klaus Voormann, a session musician and artist connected to the Beatles, who also provided consultation for the production.

Set in the vibrant, smoke-filled clubs of Hamburgs St. Pauli district, the story depicts a young Liverpool rock band meeting artists Klaus Voormann and Astrid Kirchherr. Together, they influence the bands transformation, ultimately turning them into the iconic music phenomenon the world now knows as the Beatles.

The cast portraying the Beatles has not yet been announced. German director Christian Schwochow, known for The Crown, will serve as showrunner, while Mat Whitecross, director of Coldplay: A Head Full of Dreams and Oasis: Supersonic, is set to direct. BAFTA-winning musician and composer David Holmes will oversee the series music.

Sue Deeks, BBCs head of scripted pre-buy acquisitions, said, Hamburg Days tells the captivating story of how a young band from Liverpool refined their music in Hamburg over two short years before returning to achieve global stardom, accompanied by an extraordinary soundtrack.

This announcement coincides with Sonys ongoing production of Sam Mendes four-part Beatles film series, each focusing on a different band member and slated for release in 2028. The film cast includes Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.

Hamburg Days is produced by W&B Television (a Leonine Company) and Turbine Studios for ZDF, BBC, and AGC Television. Executive producers are Benjamin Benedict, Quirin Berg, Max Wiedemann, Andrew Eaton, Justin Thomson, Stuart Ford, Lourdes Diaz, and Miguel A. Palos Jr., with Isabel Haug serving as creative producer. The series is overseen at ZDF by Frank Zervos, Caroline von Senden, and Alexandra Staib, and is supported by MOIN Film Fund Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein. AGC International will manage global sales outside of the U.K. and Germany.

Author: Natalie Monroe