Paul McCartney's dog Martha is born

The Fifth Beatle? Today we celebrate the birthday of the most famous Old English Sheepdog that was never used to advertise paint. As it was on this day in 1966 that Paul McCartney’s beloved pooch Martha was born. In High Wycombe, apparently. Paul had just moved into a house in London with girlfriend Jane Asher and decided he needed some canine companionship and so purchased Martha as a puppy. As well as appearing in various photo shoots and videos, a couple of years later the piano-led ditty ‘Martha My Dear’ appeared on The Beatles White Album.

Most Beatles’ freaks decided the song must have been a cry for help aimed at Jane, after the couple’s relationship deteriorated. But Paul later revealed it was just about the dog. Come on, give hime a break, by 1968 Paul had written about 10 million songs, so he obviously needed to dig quite deep for inspiration. A song about a dog is superior to a song about an octopuses garden, after all. Martha lived to the ripe old age of 15, passing away at Paul’s Scottish farm in 1981. But her legacy lives on. One of Martha’s offspring, Arrow, appeared on the cover of a Paul McCartney live album a few years ago.

Another strange piece of Beatles history can be seen below. John Lennon's spoon was once seen on an episode of Pawn Stars UK.