Suffering from an acute attack of tonsillitis, Ringo was unable to accompany The Beatles on this leg of their current tour. Session drummer Jimmy Nichol was brought in as a temporary replacement by Brian Epstein.
Q: Paul, what do you expect to find here in Austrailia?
JOHN: Australians, I should think.
Q: Do you have an acknowledged leader of the group?
JOHN: No, not really.
Q: We heard that you stood on your head on the balcony outside, is that right?
PAUL: I don't know where you hear these rumors.
Q: John, has the Mersey Beat changed much since you've been playing it?
JOHN: There's no such thing as Mersey Beat. The press made that up. It's all rock'n'roll.
Q: Do you play the same way now as you did?
JOHN: It's only rock'n'roll. It just so happens that we write most of it.
Q: Did Buddy Holly influence your music?
JOHN: He did in the early days. Obviously he was one of the greats.
PAUL: So did James Thurber, though, didn't he?
JOHN: Yeah, but he doesn't sing as well, does he?
Q: Have you been practicing up your Australian accents?
GEORGE: No, guvnor, not at all.
Q: Do you think you will be writing any songs with Australian themes?
JOHN: No, we never write anything with themes. We just write the same rubbish all the time.
Q: Do you play the kind of music you want to or the music you think people want to hear?
JOHN: Well, we've been playing this kind of music for five or six years, something like that. It's all just rock'n'roll. It just happens that we write it.
Q: What do you think made the difference that put you up above other groups?
GEORGE: We had a record contract.
Q: What record do you all agree is generally your best recording? Not the best seller, but rather the best musically.
JOHN: We always like the one we just made, don't we? So "Long Tall Sally."
GEORGE: I like "You Can't Do That," personally.
Q: What about you, Jimmy? How do you feel being in with the Beatles? A newcomer standing in for Ringo?
JIMMY: It's a good experience, man.
Q: How is Ringo?
JIMMY: He's much better. He joins us on Sunday.
Q: What do you do then?
JIMMY: I go back to London, where they're fixing up a band for me. I'll do some television...
JOHN: And he's away.
Q: You're progressing pretty well with your Beatle haircut.
JIMMY: I've been growing it for about three months now.
Q: How long does it take to get a magnificent mane like this?
JOHN: I can't remember being without it.
Q: Do you ever go to the barber's, John?
JOHN: No. I haven't had my hair cut since the film. The woman on the film cut it. I don't trust anybody else.
Q: This is the film, Beatlemania, is it?
JOHN: No, it's not called that. That's another one. A Hard Day's Night it's called.
Q: Are you satisfied with the finished product?
JOHN: Well, it's as good as it can be with anybody that can't act.