The Beatles in Milan, 1965: historical photos from the Publifoto Archive
24 June 2025
Intesa Sanpaolo's Gallerie d'Italia - Milan presents the photographic exhibition “Tutti pazzi per i Beatles. Il concerto del 1965 a Milano nelle fotografie di Publifoto” (Crazy for the Beatles: The 1965 Milan concert in the photographs of Publifoto).
Organised to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Beatles' only Italian tour, the exhibition presents reproductions of 62 photographs dedicated to the historic concert that the Fab Four held on 24 June 1965 at the Vigorelli velodrome in Milan.
The images come to the Publifoto Archive, acquired in 2015 by Intesa Sanpaolo with the aim of enhancing it as a national cultural asset: a valuable source for exploring 20th-century Italian history.
The Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive actually numbers more than 500 photographs relating to the Beatles' trip to Italy and, on this occasion, they will all be digitised, catalogued and madn available to the public online.
The exhibition is curated by Barbara Costa, Head of the Intesa Sanpaolo Historical Archive.
The Milan venue, along with those of Naples, Turin and Vicenza, is part of Intesa Sanpaolo's Gallerie d’Italia museum project.
Open to the public from 24 June to 7 September 2025. For more information, please visit the Gallerie d'Italia website.
The Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive
The Publifoto Archive - one of Italy’s most significant photographic archives - consists of around 7 million photographs that document the most significant moments of half a century of Italian and world history and society.
In 2015, the Publifoto Archive was acquired by Intesa Sanpaolo to preserve and promote it as a national cultural asset, an initiative promoted as part of “Progetto Cultura”, the strategic container of the Group's cultural activities.
The management of the Publifoto Archive is entrusted to the Intesa Sanpaolo Historical Archive, which has carried out a census, assessed its condition and identified conservation priorities.
Housed in the Gallerie d'Italia in Turin, the Publifoto Archive has also been enhanced through digitisation, which has made it accessible to an ever broader public: the photographic heritage is, in fact, also available for online consultation.
1. The Beatles portrayed on the terrace of the Grand Hotel Duomo; in the background the cathedral, Milan, 24 June 1965
Photography by Carlo Fumagalli - Publifoto
© Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive
2. Fans in delirium at the Beatles' car ride as they arrived in Milan, night of 23-24 June 1965
Photography by Tino Petrelli - Publifoto
© Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive
3. The Beatles' arrival at Milan Central Station, night of 23-24 June 1965
Photographic service by Gianfranco Ferrario, Benito Marino and Eugenio Pavone - Publifoto
© Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive
4. Paul McCartney and George Harrison during the afternoon concert at the Vigorelli in Milan, 24 June 1965
Photographic service by Sergio Cossu and Eugenio Pavone - Publifoto
© Intesa Sanpaolo Publifoto Archive
