Paul McCartney has shared a cryptic new post online, suggesting the return of The Beatles‘ ‘Anthology’ project. Check it out below.
The latest update was shared on McCartney’s Instagram page last night (August 19), and seemed to make a nod towards the series. In the post, a carousel of images was shared, each containing the isolated numbers one, two, three and four.
There was no caption attached to the post, nor any writing on the images, however, it appears that each of the numbers show images from The Beatles’ three-volume double set of albums inside.
Unsurprisingly, the post has got fans talking, and many in the comment section are convinced that the mysterious post is hinting at the return of the ‘Anthology’. That refers to the multi-media project that was put together by the members, and encompassed their albums, along with live versions, alternate takes, unreleased material, outtakes and never-before-seen interviews and images.
The original series, ‘Anthology 1’ arrived in November 1995, around the same time as a documentary that included interviews with the members and archival footage of both live performances and rehearsals. It was followed up by two more albums, aptly named ‘Anthology 2’ and ‘Anthology 3’, which both arrived in 1996.
Now, with the number four being included in the post, some fans are certain that it could indicate the upcoming release of ‘Anthology 4’. “anthology 4 confirmed???” one wrote, while another added: “An anthology boxset? ‘Free as a bird’ and ‘Real love’ with the voice of John cleaned? Anthology 4?”
The latter refers to how The Beatles Anthology would include some of the first new music from the band since the death of John Lennon, with McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr working with Jeff Lynne on ‘Real Love’ and ‘Free as a Bird’ (via Far Out).
The release also included remnants of a song called ‘Now And Then’, which was developed by Lennon back in 1978. In 2023, McCartney confirmed that, having received the demo from Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono in 1994, and ultimately deciding against including it on the ‘Anthology’, he and Starr had used AI to save the track and give it an official release.
It is not yet clear whether or not McCartney’s latest Instagram post is hinting at ‘Anthology 4’, and it is possible that the post could be angling towards a potential re-release of the ‘Anthology’ documentary on Disney+.
This would also be plausible, as the streaming service was recently home to the restored footage on the Beatles ‘64 documentary.
More details about what the post is angling towards is expected to be shared at a later date.
In other Beatles news, John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s NYC era and political activism is set to be explored in an extensive new box set called ‘Power To The People’, and McCartney has recently announced a North American leg of the ‘Got Back 2025’ tour.