Paul McCartney posts tribute to late Beatles bandmate George Harrison and producer George Martin

Sir Paul McCartney has paid tribute to his former Beatles bandmate George Harrison and producer George Martin, sometimes known as the fifth Beatle.

The Beatles musician, 80, from Walton in Liverpool, honoured the late pair with a social media post for St George’s Day yesterday (Sunday, 23 April).

Lead guitarist George Harrison passed away after a battle with lung cancer in November 2001, while Beatles producer Sir George Martin died in 2016 at the age of 90.

The official Paul McCartney Instagram account shared a black and white photo of the two Georges in the studio, captured by Paul’s late wife, Linda McCartney.

The 80-year-old captioned the post: “Happy St George’s Day to Georges everywhere - Paul.”

Beatles fans took to the comments of the post, with one person saying, “without these two George’s would the Beatles have existed? Legends..”

Another wrote: “What great musicians, both George Martin and George Harrison.”

A third commented: “Two of the most soft spoken and intelligent men you could ever meet. I wish I could have but admire them both. And Martin was the fifth Beatle. They brought him Gems and he cut and polished those Gems into fine Diamonds that shine to this day as their producer.”

Paul McCartney has shared tributes to George Harrison over the years since his passing and still believes his fellow Beatle is an ever-present presence in his life.

Although the pair clashed in the studio, they remained close friends up until George’s death.

In 2021 Paul took to Twitter to share an old image of himself and George Harrison in the studio with a caption reading: “Hard to believe that we lost George 20 years ago. I miss my friend so much. Love Paul.”

George Harrison was devoted to gardening and once gifted Paul a fir tree that stands at the gates of his East Sussex home, which he purchased with Linda in 1973.

In an interview with All Things Considered, the singer explained how the tree has kept George close to him for over 20 years.

“He gave me [the] tree as a present. It’s a big fir tree, and it’s by my gate [near my East Sussex home]. As I was leaving my house, I got out of the car, closed the gate and looked up at the tree and said, ‘Hi, George.’

“There he is, growing strongly… that takes me back to the time when I hitchhiked with him! [George and John Lennon still have] an ever-present presence. That’s the tree George gave me. George has entered that tree for me. I hope he’s happy with that,” Paul said.

Paul was George’s best man when he married model Pattie Boyd in 1966 and was the only other Beatles member to attend the wedding ceremony.