Ringo Starr and Harry Nilsson playing Merlin (yes, the wizard) and the son of Dracula: what could possibly go wrong? Well, a fair bit as it turns out: some baffling choices are made and it can't quite make up its mind what it is, but at least Ringo enjoyed being a producer, didn't he? No, not really. Still, he had a bar in his Apple Films office, at least.

• Watch the film in this fairly ropy VHS transfer: https://youtu.be/cfkHN_QxNcw
• Or in this weird but fascinating HD upscale made using AI: https://youtu.be/1o9zHsyl-3U
• The Irish actor who played Merlin in the BBC series is Colin Morgan: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2959880
• Woody Allen's 1966 film What's Up, Tiger Lily? where he redubbed a Japanese spy film to make it a comedy: https://share.google/4D2x2eAJnUsmysiq7
• The other Apple Films productions we mention are Raga: https://youtu.be/bvwf53_ZPEM
• Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs: https://youtu.be/XOxABAk0scU
• Did Britain Murder Hanratty? https://youtu.be/HGl9tzMNtpE
• An agreement between France and Great Britain to build what became the Channel Tunnel was signed in 1973, so perhaps it was in the news at the time? That's our best guess anyway: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_Tunnel#History
• Nilsson's Son of Schmilsson album: https://open.spotify.com/album/522ynXVXJEFsiozNTy6rbt

The Beatles Films Podcast is hosted by Matt Looker and Ed Williamson. We're both film writers and Beatles fans. Between us we've written for TheShiznit.co.uk, Total Film, Den of Geek and Virgin Media.

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