There have been a ton of shows about John Lennon over the years, but this one looks pretty amazing. BBC Radio 2 will mark what would have been John Lennon’s 80th birthday with a major two part special on the legendary Beatle.
 
But instead of the usual music experts and talking heads, they’ve turned to the people who knew him best. The special will feature Paul McCartney, being interviewed by Sean and Julian Lennon, who will all contribute personal memories of the man and father they knew. I’m not sure that’s ever been done before.
 
Among the highlights the special promises:
 
-McCartney performs a snippet of a never-before-heard Beatles song called “Just Fun,” which he and Lennon wrote in the late 50s and admitted was too awful to put on vinyl.
 
-Recollections from both brothers talking publicly for the first time about their famous dad and when they realized as little kids that he was more than just their father. “They talk about their memories of finding out their dad was a Beatle, and not like everyone else’s dad, with Julian talking about seeing fans at the end of the garden each day when he was two or three years old growing up in England, and Sean recalling similar scenes outside their apartment building in New York,” according to a press release.

-McCartney's personal anecdotes about Julia Lennon, John's late mother, whose death in a car accident profoundly changed her son's life.

-Why the "Let It Be" era may not have been as fractious as everyone thinks. 
 
-Recollections from Elton John about how he was so influenced by the Beatles, he “cycled eight miles to buy a copy of “Sgt. Pepper,” and how he became Sean’s godfather.
 
The show airs from 9-10 PM local time (4-5 PM Toronto time) on Oct. 3 & 4 on BBC Radio 2, which is not geoblocked. It will be archived on their website for online listening for another 30 days afterwards. 
 
Much more here.