British rock group the Beatles performing their last live public concert on the rooftop of the Apple Organization building for director Michael Lindsey-Hogg's film documentary, 'Let It Be,' on Savile Row, London, UK, 30th January 1969; drummer Ringo Starr sits behind his kit, singer-songwriters Paul McCartney and John Lennon (1940 - 1980) perform at their microphones, and guitarist George Harrison (1943 - 2001) stands behind them. Lennon's wife Yoko Ono sits at right.

We have some exciting news for Beatles fans! If you would like to relive the famed 1970 Let It Be documentary featuring the Fab Four, Disney+ is making your dreams come true. The film has been unavailable for broadcast or public screenings for over 50 years and has never been available on streaming. Fans have had to resort to searching for old VHS copies in the last several decades if they wanted to rewatch it.

Let It Be US poster art, top left: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, George Harrison, 1970

The documentary was released in May 1970 around the time of the Beatles breakup. It has been restored and will be released on Disney+ on May 8, 2024. Disney+ shared that Let It Be will be “bringing viewers into the studio and onto Apple Corps’ London rooftop in January 1969 as The Beatles, joined by Billy Preston, write and record their Grammy Award-winning album Let It Be, with its Academy Award-winning title song, and perform live for the final time as a group.”

LET IT BE, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, 1970, rehearsing in the studio

Everett Collection

The Beatles broke up just one month before the release of Let It Be and fans watched the movie with fear that the band may never get back together again. Michael Lindsay-Hogg directed the film. He said about making the movie, “‘Let It Be’ was ready to go in October/November 1969, but it didn’t come out until April 1970. One month before its release, The Beatles officially broke up. And so the people went to see ‘Let It Be’ with sadness in their hearts, thinking, ‘I’ll never see The Beatles together again. I will never have that joy again,’ and it very much darkened the perception of the film. But, in fact, how often do you get to see artists of this stature working together to make what they hear in their heads into songs?”

LET IT BE, Ringo Starr, 1970

Everett Collection

He continued, “And then you get to the roof, and you see their excitement, camaraderie, and sheer joy in playing together again as a group and know, as we do now, that it was the final time, and we view it with the full understanding of who they were and still are and a little poignancy. I was knocked out by what Peter was able to do with ‘Get Back,’ using all the footage I’d shot 50 years previously.”

To tease the news, the official Beatles account and Paul McCartney’s Instagram page posted a photo of the album cover and wrote, “At last.” At last, indeed. Will you be watching when it goes live on Disney+? It is sure to relive a lot of memories for big fans of the group.