A major new BBC drama about the early years of The Beatles has officially started production, with Hamburg Days now filming in Germany and Liverpool.
The six-part series will chart the band’s formative Hamburg years, focusing on the period between 1960 and 1962 when John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe and Pete Best performed hundreds of gigs in the German port city before becoming one of the most famous bands in the world.
Produced by W&B Television and Turbine Studios, and co-financed by AGC Television and German broadcaster ZDF, Hamburg Days is inspired by the autobiography of German artist and musician Klaus Voormann. The BBC has acquired the series for BBC One and BBC iPlayer, with filming taking place across Hamburg, Munich and Liverpool.
Set in the clubs of Hamburg’s St. Pauli red-light district, the drama follows the young Liverpool band as they meet Voormann and photographer Astrid Kirchherr, whose friendship and creative influence helped shape the group’s early image. Kirchherr, who died in 2020, has long been associated with the development of The Beatles’ visual style, including the famous mop-top look. She was also engaged to Stuart Sutcliffe, who left the band to pursue art before his death from a brain haemorrhage in 1962, aged 21.
The cast includes Rhys Mannion as John Lennon, Ellis Murphy as Paul McCartney, Harvey Brett as George Harrison, Louis Landau as Stuart Sutcliffe and Patrick Gilmore as Pete Best. Luna Jordan will play Astrid Kirchherr, Casper von Bülow will portray Klaus Voormann, and Laura Tonke will appear as Nielsa Kirchherr.
The series has been written by Jamie Carragher, whose credits include Succession, and will be directed by Christian Schwochow, known for The Crown, alongside Laura Lackmann. BAFTA-winning producer David Holmes, whose work includes Killing Eve and the Ocean’s franchise, is curating the music.
For CultureCues, Hamburg Days feels like a smart way into The Beatles story. Rather than starting with the mania, the screaming crowds and the world-changing fame, the series is looking back at the grit, graft and strange creative alchemy that came before it all. The Hamburg years are where the band forged their identity, not just musically, but visually and culturally too.
The project also arrives as Beatles stories continue to find new life on screen. Sam Mendes is currently working on a separate four-film Beatles project, with Paul Mescal, Harris Dickinson, Joseph Quinn and Barry Keoghan set to play Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr respectively. Those films are currently scheduled for release in April 2028.
Hamburg Days will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Nikki Murray is a UK-based writer, screenwriter and founder & editor of CultureCues, covering film, television, music and pop culture. Her work focuses on storytelling and the moments shaping modern entertainment.