Under Brian Epstein’s guidance, the Beatles traded dodgy Liverpool clubs for the world’s greatest stages. But the manager’s private life was a far more tragic tale

By Philip Norman

There never was nor could there ever be another pop manager like Brian Epstein, the young record retailer from Liverpool with the uncertain smile who stumbled on the Beatles and spun what has truly been called “the 20th century’s greatest romance.”

Pop artists’ managers in Britain had been a seedy bunch known to the public, if at all, for their ruthless exploitation and defrauding of their naïve young charges. But Brian was of an utterly different stamp, with his posh accent, punctilious good manners, and belief in honoring his agreements and giving value for money.

His achievement in a profession in which he had no previous experience, and for READ ON