Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite - ltd. edition letterpress print

Peter Dean, a London designer and lifelong Beatles fan, has painstakingly recreated this poster, using the traditional printing methods used to create the original poster in 1843. He explains, “I always longed to own a copy of the Mr. Kite poster, but as a designer, I couldn’t accept the poor imitations that were available. So I decided to do it properly.” Dean called on renowned wood-engraving artist Andy English to recreate the two circus characters on the poster, while Graham Bignell, who runs New North Press in Shoreditch, London, matched the Victorian metal and wooden typefaces on the original using his extensive collection of Victorian type.

Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite is a track on the Beatles 1967 Sergeant Pepper album. Initially banned by the BBC for what it perceived as drug references, in fact much of the song’s ornate language was taken directly from a circus poster John Lennon had bought in an antique shop in 1967. Pablo Fanque’s Circus Royal promised dancing horses and legendary contortionists which appealed to Lennon’s sense of the ridiculous. “I had all the words staring me in the face one day when I was looking for a song,” he said. “I hardly made up a word."

Letterpress print, with wood-engravings, edition of 1967. This print is supplied rolled in a postal tube.

The poster, the ultimate piece of memorabilia for all Beatles fans, is printed as a limited edition of 1967 to commemorate Sgt. Pepper’s release date on 1 June 1967.