Updated February 14, 2023 5.3K votes 995 voters 48.7K views
Over 900 Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of 20 Beatles Conspiracy Theories That Change The Band's Story Completely
Voting Rules
Vote for the most outlandish conspiracy theory about the lads from Liverpool.
Decades after they changed the pop culture landscape, The Beatles still inspire sound-alikes, adulation, and a whole barrel full of conspiracy theories. From Paul being slain to John Lennon selling his soul, people are pretty sure that the lads from Liverpool were up to no good. It's almost a guarantee that none of the conspiracy theories on this list are true, but wouldn’t it be interesting if about three or four of them were?
There hasn’t been another artist to incur this amount of fantasy projected onto them since John Lennon was slain in 1980, whether it’s because we’ve suffered an ever increasing amount of disposable pop stars, or if it’s because folks are still jamming "Helter Skelter," we don’t know. Fall down the rabbit hole of Beatles conspiracy theories, and try to stay sane as things get very curious.
Take a moment from typing up your manifesto to vote on your favorite Beatles conspiracy theory.
In 1994, college student Chris Fishel devised evidence that instead of Paul being passed, that it was every other member of the The Beatles who had actually gone on to the Greaet Beyond. Fishel argues that Ringo Starr was supposedly the first to go, in 1963.
He was then followed by George Harrison in 1964, and John Lennon in 1965.
Prior to the Tate/LaBianca incident in 1969, Charles Manson believed that he shared a telepathic connection with the lads from Liverpool. So much so that he was pretty sure that The White Album was speaking directly to him and asking him to incite a race conflict.
Obviously, this was not the case, but the entire Beatles/Manson connection is worth a read if you have a day to spend with a little conspiracy theory.
You're probably thinking to yourself, "why would Stephen King want to take down John Lennon?" Lucky for you Stephen Lightfoot spells it out on his website. Lightfoot states Stephen King, Nixon, and Ronald Reagan, all of them acting on behalf of the CIA and communicating through headlines in TIME, Newsweek, and other similar periodicals worked together to take out John Lennon.
Maybe King was planning on putting the ex-Beatle in a pet semetery? Until the author comes forward with the truth, we'll never know.
In September 1969, American college students published articles claiming that clues to McCartney's supposed passing could be found among the lyrics and artwork of the Beatles' recordings. This might be the best of the many Beatles theories.
This is because it's so far-fetched given how much time would have had to go into pretending to carry out such a charade.
377 votes
5
234 VOTES
The Beatles Were In A Coven Of Rock N' Roll Witches
In the song "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," Paul sings that it was "20 years ago today…" and to those convinced of a Satanic Beatles conspiracy, of course Paul was referring to the passing, 20 years prior, of Satan's earthbound buddy Aleister Crowley.
From there, one can easily connect the dots, and 20 or 30 entirely rhetorical and totally tenuous connections later, we find that the Beatles were part of a Hollywood-area Satanic covenestablished by Crowley, and frequented by other devil-worshippers including the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin.
234 votes
6
226 VOTES
The Beatles Have Been Played by Multiple Actors Over the Years
When a theory begins with "this is not a joke" you know you've got some serious stuff on your hands. Basically, the evidence presented is based on height discrepancies, changing facial appearances, and shifting mannerisms (such as certain members seeming to be left-handed and other times right-handed).
This is all incredibly definitive proof that the Beatles couldn't have been the same four people since the beginning.
