Beatles tape found in garage after 44 years

London: The British Broadcasting Corporation was to air a long-lost Beatles interview featuring John Lennon and Paul McCartney talking about the day they met and their songwriting partnership.

The precious film sat forgotten for 44 years in a garage in south London until film fan Richard Jeffs realised a piece of pop history was contained inside.

Experts were surprised to find the audio portion still usable for radio broadcast.

The nine-minute interview was recorded at the Scottish Television studios in April 1964 during the early days of Beatlemania. It was to be broadcast for the first time on BBC Radio 4 yesterday. On the tape, Lennon tells how he was playing with a skiffle band outside Liverpool when McCartney introduced himself.