Paul McCartney was joined by Ringo Starr for Beatles classics at The O2 – plus Rolling Stones duet

Sir Paul McCartney welcomed his former Beatles bandmate Sir Ringo Starr to the stage while playing to a packed crowd at The O2 on Thursday night (December 19). Arriving on stage, Sir Ringo said: “I’ve had a great night tonight, it’s been a great show.”

The pair then tore through Helter Skelter and Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, before The Beatles’ drummer left, adding: “I’m off now, I’ve had a great night and I love you all.” Sir Paul was also joined by The Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood for the song Get Back, which saw him play his original Hofner 500/1 bass for the first time in 50 years, after it was stolen in 1972.

Sir Ringo and Sir Paul have reunited a number of times since leaving The Beatles, including on Sir Paul’s 2019 Freshen Up tour and at Sir Ringo’s 2015 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction. The show was the last of Sir Paul’s Got Back Tour, which began in October, with the veteran playing dates in Paris, Madrid and Sao Paulo, as well as two dates at Manchester’s Co-Op Live and The O2.

During the show, he treated fans to a jumbo set packed with hits from The Beatles and Wings and more. Opening with a blistering rendition of the Fab Four’s A Hard Day’s Night, the 82-year-old continued his tradition of not having an opening act, performing just under 40 songs from one of the most impressive songbooks Britain has produced.

At the start of the night, Sir Paul told the crowd: “Oh London, this is the last night of our current tour, we’ve been around South America and everywhere. So it’s great to be back and we’re going to have some fun tonight.”

The crowd were thrown into Wing’s prog rock song Junior’s Farm and the bluesy grind of Letting Go, before Sir Paul caused hysteria with Drive My Car. Later in the set, the singer played a bit of the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s Foxy Lady and took to a second uplifting stage to perform The Beatles’ Blackbird and solo track Here Today.

After playing the Hendrix cut, Sir Paul said: “I was lucky enough to get to know him a bit in the 60s and he was a great guy, a great guitarist but a very humble person.” He also played The Quarrymen’s (Sir Paul’s first band in which he played alongside John Lennon and George Harrison) In Spite Of All The Danger, before performing what is believed to be The Beatles’ final single on 2023’s Now And Then.

The set also saw him repeat his virtual duet with John Lennon on I’ve Got A Feeling, played during the Liverpool band’s infamous rooftop concert atop Apple Corp’s London headquarters. Other set highlights included Sir Paul’s attempt at Sweet-esque glam in Jet and a euphoric rendition of Wing’s James Bond theme Live And Let Die, leading to fireworks and pyrotechnics, replicating the film’s opening title.

Sir Paul was also joined by a children’s choir for Wonderful Christmastime, adding some festive cheer to the evening.

You can sign up to get the most exciting events for the new bars and restaurants in London sent directly to your WhatsApp from the team.

To sign up, you must already have WhatsApp. All you have to do is click on this link and select “join the community”.

No one will be able to see who is registered and no one can send messages except for the team.

We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions and advertisements from us and our partners.

If you don’t like our community, you can check out whenever you want. To leave our community click on the name at the top of the screen and select “leave group”.

If you are curious, you can read our privacy notice.

Click here to sign up for alerts.

Keep up to date with London’s hottest events, latest restaurant openings and best deals with our Going Out newsletter. Register HERE!