The Beatles: Help! heading to Blu-ray

The Beatles' second feature film, 1965's Help!, is on the way on Blu-ray.

On June 24 (June 25 in North America), Help! makes its eagerly awaited Blu-ray debut in a single-disc package pairing the digitally restored film and 5.1 soundtrack with an hour of extra features, including a 30-minute documentary about the making of the film, memories of the cast and crew, an in-depth look at the restoration process, an outtake scene, and original theatrical trailers and radio spots. An introduction by the film's director, Richard Lester, and an appreciation by Martin Scorsese are included in the Blu-ray's booklet.

Help!'s Blu-ray edition follows the 2012 release of The Beatles' digitally restored Yellow Submarine and Magical Mystery Tour feature films on Blu-ray, DVD and iTunes with extensive extras. Help!'s restoration for its 2007 DVD debut wowed viewers, earning five-times platinum sales in the U.S. and praise from a broad range of top media outlets around the world, including USA Today heralding the DVD as "a grand re-release,"

Directed by Richard Lester, who also directed the band's debut feature film, 1964's A Hard Day's Night, Help! follows The Beatles as they become passive recipients of an outside plot that revolves around Ringo's possession of a sacrificial ring, which he cannot remove from his finger. As a result, he and his bandmates John, Paul and George are chased from London to the Austrian Alps and the Bahamas by religious cult members, a mad scientist and the London police.

In addition to starring The Beatles, Help! boasts a witty script, a great cast of British character actors, and classic Beatles songs "Help!," "You're Going To Lose That Girl," "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away," "Ticket To Ride," "I Need You," "The Night Before," and "Another Girl."

Help!'s Blu-ray package pairs the digitally restored original film with these extra features:
• "The Beatles in Help!" – a 30-minute documentary about the making of the film with Richard Lester, the cast and crew, including exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of The Beatles on-set.
• "A Missing Scene" – a film outtake, featuring Wendy Richard
• "The Restoration of Help!" – an in-depth look at the restoration process
• "Memories of Help!" – the cast and crew reminisce
• 1965 Theatrical Trailers – two original U.S. trailers and one original Spanish trailer
• 1965 U.S. Radio Spots (hidden in disc menus)

www.thebeatles.com

CAST
The Beatles:
John………..………………………………………………………...John Lennon
Paul………………………………………………………………Paul McCartney
George……….…………………………………………………George Harrison
Ringo……….…………………………………………………………...Ringo Starr
Clang………………………………………………………………….Leo McKern
Ahme…………………………………………………………………Eleanor Bron
Foot…………….........................................................................Victor Spinetti
Algernon…………........................................................................Roy Kinnear
Superintendent........................................................................Patrick Cargill
Bhuta………………......................................................................John Bluthal
Jeweller……………………………………………………………...Peter Copley
Doorman…………………………………………………………………Alfie Bass
Abdul…………………………………………………………..…Warren Mitchell
Lawnmower………………………………………………………...Bruce Lacey
Cross channel swimmer……………………………………………...Mal Evans
Women in street……………………Dandy Nichols and Gretchen Franklin


PRODUCTION
Director ……………………………………………………………Richard Lester
Producer ………………………………………………………...Walter Shenson
Screenplay…………………………………..Marc Behm and Charles Wood
Story by………………………………………………………………..Marc Behm
Director of Photography…………………………………………David Watkin
Production Manager……………………………………………….John Pellatt
Art Director………………………………………………………Raymond Simm
Colour Consultant and Titles………………………………...Robert Freeman
Costume Designer…………………………………………………….Julie Harris
Musical Director………………………………………………………Ken Thorne
Songs composed by…………………..John Lennon and Paul McCartney
and by George Harrison
Songs performed by………………………………………………...The Beatles
Songs produced by……………………………………………..George Martin