Beatles director Richard Lester donates archives to BFI

The draft scripts for The Beatles' films A Hard Day's Night and Help have been donated to the British Film Institute by director Richard Lester.Simply titled The Beatles and Beatles Two, they form part of Lester's archive, which is all going to the BFI.

The treasures include correspondence from Hollywood stars Audrey Hepburn, Raquel Welch and Charlton Heston. The archive also contains a "begging letter" from Spike Milligan, who offers to do laundry in exchange for a job.

The comic, who rose to fame on The Goon Show, wrote to Lester in 1980, saying he was bored with television and "no matter how small I would like a part, preferably the lead."

Milligan, who died in 2002, reminded the director he had previously worked as a "straight actor," adding: "Have own beard and wig, on site laundry done and secret masses said for Polish Catholics," according to BBC News.