(VIDEO) Hey Jude Tops Beatles Poll In Anniversary Celebrations

The Nation's Favourite Fab Four Songs Are Revealed

Chart-topping hit Hey Jude has been named the nation's favourite Beatles song in celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of the band's recording career..

The track topped a poll of more than 12,000 music fans conducted by BBC local radio.

The top three songs were all written by Paul McCartney (far right)

The top three were all composed by Sir Paul McCartney, with Yesterday and Let It Be at positions two and three, the Press Association reported.

Hey Jude featured in the opening ceremony for the London Olympics, although Sir Paul's performance was not universally loved.

The poll coincided with a half-century since the release of the Beatles' first single, Love Me Do, on 5 October, 1962.

The oldest song to make the top 10 favourites was 1963 hit She Loves You, which was ranked eighth.

Runner-up Yesterday was notably the first Beatles song to feature only one member of the group, with Sir Paul accompanied by a string quartet.

Two songs from the Let It Be album made the top 10 - with The Long And Winding Road making it to number seven - despite Phil Spector's syrupy production, which has often been given a mauling by critics.

No songs from Rubber Soul, A Hard Day's Night, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band or the "White Album" - officially called The Beatles - made it into the top 10.

The results were revealed on air by local BBC stations in a nationwide celebration called My Beatles Story Day, for which listeners shared their memories of the band.

BBC4 is to screen an hour-long documentary, Love Me Do: The Beatles 62, on Sunday at 10pm looking at the story behind their first single.

The top 10 favourite Beatles hits according to the BBC local radio poll:

1. Hey Jude

2. Yesterday

3. Let It Be

4. All You Need Is Love

5. Eleanor Rigby

6. Here Comes The Sun

7. The Long And Winding Road

8. She Loves You

9. I Want To Hold Your Hand

10. Strawberry Fields Forever

Watch The Beatles perform Hey Jude below

Updated: 23:38 5 October - Let It Be album corrections

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