Saoirse Ronan has been filming Beatles biopic scenes on Abbey Road in London while wearing a fake baby bump to play Linda McCartney. The 32-year-old Irish actress was spotted on set in a blue minidress and knee-high socks for director Sam Mendes' four-part cinematic project.
Ronan portrays the late photographer and musician opposite Paul Mescal, who plays Paul McCartney. Production recreated the band's famous August 8, 1969 photoshoot on Abbey Road, which produced the cover for The Beatles' penultimate album. At the time of the original shoot, Linda was pregnant with the couple's first child together. Their daughter Mary was born on August 28, 1969, just days after the group completed recording the album.
While freelance photographer Iain Macmillan, a close friend of John Lennon, took the iconic cover photograph, Linda captured behind-the-scenes photos of the band during the session.
Linda McCartney's Photography Career and Marriage
Linda was already a celebrated photographer before meeting McCartney, securing her major breakthrough in 1966 by photographing the Rolling Stones for Town & Country magazine. Working as a receptionist and photography assistant for the publication at the time, she volunteered to attend a party hosted by the rock band on a yacht. As the only photographer on board, her shots launched her rock and roll career.
A year later, while on assignment in London, she met McCartney at the Bag O'Nails music club at the height of Beatlemania. The couple married in a small civil ceremony at Marylebone Town Hall in March 1969. They remained together for almost three decades until her death from breast cancer at age 56 in 1998. Following the breakup of The Beatles, Linda became McCartney's musical partner, playing keyboards and singing harmonies in Wings.
Female Cast and Mendes Vision
Ronan forms part of a female lead cast that includes Mia McKenna-Bruce as Ringo Starr's first wife Maureen Starkey, Aimee Lou Wood as George Harrison's model wife Pattie Boyd, and Anna Sawai as John Lennon's wife Yoko Ono.
Following the casting, Mendes expressed his enthusiasm for the ensemble. "Maureen, Linda, Yoko and Pattie are four fascinating and unique figures in their own right," Mendes said. "I'm thrilled that we've managed to persuade four of the most talented women working in film today to join this amazing adventure."
Band Tension and On-Set Production
The four Beatles members are portrayed by Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr, and Joseph Quinn as George Harrison. All four actors were spotted shooting scenes on location in London this week, surrounded by camera operators and crew members.
During filming, the actors hinted at the internal tension that took place within the band. Mescal, looking barely recognisable in costume as McCartney, appeared locked in a row as he wagged his finger at Keoghan, who plays Starr.
Four-Film Project and Future Release
Titled The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event, the project was announced last year. Each film will take the perspective of one band member as they evolve from unknowns in Liverpool in the early 1960s to becoming the biggest band in the world and breaking up in 1970.
The project marks the first time that surviving band members McCartney and Starr, alongside the families of late members Lennon and Harrison, have granted rights for feature films about them. Production is currently underway in London, with all four films set for simultaneous release next year and in 2028.
