‘A huge event’: excitement as the Beatles’ final song Now and Then approaches release

AI-enhanced song released at 2pm GMT today, but Beatles experts are divided over how effectively it could capture the band’s spirit

• Listen to Now and Then and read our review

George Harrison originally disliked it; fans had long assumed it would never be released. But the “final” song by the Beatles, Now and Then, is being released at 2pm GMT, an unexpected last flourish for arguably the UK’s greatest band.

“It’s a big moment,” says Dr Holly Tessler of the University of Liverpool, who specialises in the Beatles’ history and legacy. “It’s strange to think that a band that broke up more than 50 years ago is telling you that this is our last song … in a way, Paul and Ringo, who are both in their 80s, are drawing a line. It’s a very sweet moment I suspect for almost all Beatles fans; it feels like an ending. So I do think it’s significant.”