Ringo Starr, Ringo.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

Beatles drummer Ringo Starr is sharing his personal photographs of life on the road with the British rock band in a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London.

As the Beatles skyrocketed to stardom in the 1960s, Starr always had his camera close at hand. Perhaps unsurprisingly, however, the drummer didn’t always take the time to develop his film. The exhibition is drawn from a cache of thousands of forgotten negatives Starr only recently rediscovered.

Ringo Starr, John & Paul.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

The show coincides with the September 21st wide release of Starr’s book, simply titled, Photograph, which contains 250 of the drummer’s portraits.

“These are shots that no one else could have taken. Together they chart the story of four lads from Liverpool trying to live normal lives amidst the frenzy that surrounded them,” said Starr in a statement.

Ringo Starr, Paul & Mal.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

“We always had a real photographer around us, like Dezo Hoffman and Bob Freeman who took a lot of photos of the Beatles for our album covers. But I took pictures of them photographing us,” added Starr. “I hope you’ll enjoy a few unique Beatles memories with me.”

Ringo Starr, George.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

Among those memories is a shot that Starr snapped of himself smoking a cigarette in a mirror. “I like to say it is the first selfie,” he told the Guardian.

Ringo Starr, Paul.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

The musician now hopes to follow up on the publication. “The other boys had cameras too, so the next plan is I want to get the rest of my pictures, Paul’s pictures, Yoko will have John’s pictures, Olivia George’s… it would make a great book,” he told the Guardian. “I’ll be in a lot more photos.”

Ringo Starr, Ringo and George.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

Ringo Starr, India.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

Ringo Starr John.
Photo: Ringo Starr.

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