Due to high costs I have decided to drop the .co.uk domain, so please make sure that your bookmarks are set to www.thewordislove.com I have also changed web space providers. If all goes to plan, there won't be any noticable difference to the site! If anyone does notice any technical problems, please let me know!

Liverpool Beatle Week is just one week away. I am not attending for the first time in many years, so if you would like to submit any reports and photographs for inclusion in the site, please do so and I will add them! If you're going, have a great time and have a drink or two for me!

The Courier Journal of Louisville has a feature on last weekend's Abbey Road On The River Festival. You can see the article and a link to pictures from the event here.

There's just a couple of weeks until the biggest Beatles convention in North America. Abbey Road On The River takes place at the Kentucky Centre and Belvedere Park, Louisville, Kentucky from May 25-28 and features 10 stages of music! Tickets are still availble - check out www.abbeyroadontheriver.com for information.

Jimmy Pou, one of the worlds greatest George Harrison tribute artists has contacted us to tell us that he is leaving 1964... The Tribute after 12 years, for a new project. He makes his debut with The British Revolution in Branson, Missouri today. Jimmy's new band mates are well known to TWILers - Jim Martin and Paul Lynch of British Export and John Doud from Beatlegacy. The British Revolution will be performing weekly Monday-Saturday from 12.30-2pm at the Bart Rockett Theater. There will be also evening shows on Mondays and Tuesdays at 10.30pm, and if you're going to Abbey Road On The River, you'll get to see them there!

Macca lookalike Neil Tudor had a very surprise booking recently. He wrote to tell us: "Last Saturday, 30th April I was booked through one of my lookalike agents at www.fakefaces.co.uk by Paul McCartney's own P.A. to attend Sir Pauls' keyboard player's 50th birthday party. The guys name is Paul 'Wix' Wickens who had been his keyboard player since 1990. Sir Paul was unable to attend, and in his absence wanted me to go in his place... how wild!! Paul had checked out the internet and picked me personally. Through his PA, he advised me on what and what not to wear, and also asked me to sing Yesterday... and of course to take my semi-acoustic guitar along to do so!" There is a picture of Neil with the birthday boy, Wix, himself on our Neil Tudor page here.

Steven Howard of The Mersey Beatles has been in contact to tell us of an exciting charity gig they are taking part in. They will be performing alongside the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra (conducted by Jonathan Butcher) at Beddington Park in Surrey on 24 June. The evening will end with a spectaculr firework display. The event is raising funds for the Carshalton Beeches Rotary Club. Tickets are available online here or by calling 020 8647 3046.

The Fab Faux are playing a pair of gigs entitled "Lime Street Rock & Abbey Roll" on 30 & 31 May at Webster Hall, NYC. Tickets are available from Ticketweb here. Check out the rockin' poster here!
The Fab Faux are:
Jack - quietly seducing the entire room....
Rich - the heartbeat of the Faux....
Will - funny clothes....
Frank - sorry girls, he's taken....
Jimmy - master of all, jack of none....

Do you remember The Beatcombers from a few years ago at Beatle Week? Well, their front man George Burton has been in touch; he's recorded a solo album of original material (it's very good), and one of his songs has been selected from 6000 entries for the finals of the O2 Undiscovered competition. You can hear the song and vote on it here: http://undiscovered.o2.co.uk/showCaseTopTen.aspx?menuItemID=3 . We think it's really good - let us know what you think of it!

View full press release

News from Genesis Publications about their latest Beatle-related release. "Now These Days Are Gone features over 200 previously unseen photos of The Beatles taken by Michael Peto. The photos lay undiscovered in the archives at the University of Dundee until two years ago. Now they are available in this magnificent, large format, handbound book, a limited edition of just 2,500 copies. All the photos were taken in 1965 and feature The Beatles on the set of Help!, in the studio, relaxing with tea and biscuits, taking lunch, and facing the press the day their MBEs were announced. Most remarkable of all are a series of photos of Ringo at home with his former wife Maureen. The images are a candid insight to the everyday world of the world¹s greatest band at the height of Beatlemania. The books are selling quickly at the current pre-publication price of £250. Fans wanting a copy should move fast before the full publication price of £295 is introduced on April 1st. For more information, see attachment, go to www.genesis-publications.com"

Liverpool's Blue Meanies are back and better than ever. With an ever growing repertoire they play The Beatles songs which many other bands avoid! You can catch them in Liverpool at the Orrell Park Ballrom on 31 March, and they'll also be at Beatle Week in August.

We've had news for Nova Scotia that there is a new Beatles Festival taking place this summer. Organised by TWIL friend Hal Bruce, the 1st Annual Maritime Beatle Event will take place in Halifax on 3 June 2006 featuring Hal Bruce and his friend Scott Ferguson, The Repeatles and Jay Goeppner from Chicago's Instant Karma. Check out our Conventions page for more info.

Liverpool City Council latest press release includes the launch of a new 'Home of The Beatles' map which is the first to contain the full list of Beatles attractions in one publication, from venues such as the Casbah and Cavern to the homes of Lennon and McCartney to the Beatles Story Museum and Magical Mystery Tour. It was officially launched at the British Travel Trade Fair at the NEC in Birmingham by Liverpool tribute band The Mersey Beatles last week.

The World Famous Cavern Club now has the license to open 24/7 and opens its doors to the public seven days a week. A full live music programme operates from Thursday - Sunday inclusive and The Cavern Club will now be available to cater for all corporate and private functions.

And more Cavern City Tours news - an estimated opening date for their Hard Day's Night Hotel: Spring 2007. It is the world's first hotel themed around The Beatles. Connecting directly to The Cavern Club itself, this 4 star hotel will take guests chronologically (via floors) through the Beatles career, starting from the Cavern days right up to the final roof top gig. The hotel will have 110 bedrooms including executive suites, function rooms and conference facilities with first class service, as you would expect of a city centre hotel.

The Beatlemaniacs (England) are heading off today on a tour of New Zealand. They will be playing venues all over both the North and South Islands during the 6 week tour. For full details see their gig listing here.

Damjan Dasic has contacted TWIL from Serbia, to tell us about his band The Bestbeat. We're excited to hear of the first Beatles Tribute band from Serbia, and the 620th band on our site! Welcome to thewordislove.com, Damjan!

We've received lots of Musicians Wanted ads and there are still more to add to the site (out of time today!). Check them out here.

Cavern City Tours have announced bands confirmed so far for their Liverpool Beatles Festival in August. You can see an outline programme on our Beatle Week page and more over at CCTs website here.