As with so many questions about the Beatles, there are several theories in this case. The funniest of them was brought into circulation by John Lennon himself.
In an interview he once said that he had the vision of a man on a burning cake who said: “You are Beatles – with an” A “in the middle.” (“I had a vision that a man came unto us on a flaming pie, and he said, ‘You are Beatles with an A.’ And so we were.”)
Beatles without “A” are beetles in English – and that also plays a role in the second possible explanation. Sometime between late 1959 and early 1960 the band needed a new name again. In admiration for Buddy Holly and his band The Crickets (“The Crickets”), they wanted to call themselves similar.
It is said to have been John who – in search of another insect – fell for “beetles”. And since they were a beat group, John decided to turn Beetles into Beatles.
In the meantime, the Beatles also called themselves the Silver Beatles. A friend had told her that the Beatles was way too short; decent bands have longer names. That’s how they came up with Silver Beatles and actually stuck to the longer version for a few months.
A third and still quite recent theory comes from Derek Taylor, the group’s former press agent; he in turn relies on George.
According to George, Stu Sutcliffe, the group’s former bassist, saw a gang of motorcyclists dressed in black and called the Beetles in the Marlon Brando film “The Wild One”. Because of her preference for black leather clothes, Stu suggested this name to John; he agreed and only changed it to Beatles.
At most, it can only be said that the idea of writing the Beatles with an “A” goes back to John – even if a man whispered it to him on a burning cake.
