Preview: Mitch Benn is the 37th Beatle

Mitch Benn claims to be the 37th Beatle in his new UK stand-up tour.

Inspired by the myriad who hold claim to the title “the fifth Beatle” – from Brian Epstein, Pete Best and Stuart Sutcliffe to more left-field assertion such as Monty Python – Benn uses a flipchart, his guitar and a smart phone to dissect the various claims to the title, and to trace his own position in the hierarchy.

Benn got the idea when rock and roll musician Tony Sheridan – whose single “My Bonnie” featured The Beatles as a backing band before they became famous – died about a year ago, and whose obituaries invariably began with “Often known as ‘the fifth Beatle…’.

“Hang on”, Mitch says. “How many people have been referred to as ‘the fifth Beatle’? There seems to be an awful lot of ‘fifth Beatles’.”

Benn, who is probably best known for his contributions to BBC Radio 4’s long-running topical comedy The Now Show, attracted positive reviews for the show when he performed it at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe.

And following January’s broadcast of a truncated version of the show, Benn is now working on a follow-up show, which could feature The Rolling Stones.

Mitch Benn is the 37th Beatle is currently touring the UK, including the Little Theatre in Chorley on 8 March, Salford Lowry on 30 March, The Stand in Newcastle on 15 April, and the Carriageworks, Leeds, on 4 June. The complete list of dates is here.