BBC2 - Saturday
They’ve been rocking for 60 years, and are still selling out stadiums and attracting new fans with every generation. So, to mark the occasion, each Rolling Stone agreed to sit down and share their personalities, passions and memories for the cameras.
‘I was thinking about a way to tell the story that didn’t feel too familiar, which is why we focus on the four individuals, rather than doing a more predictable trek through the group’s journey. A lot of people already know that side,’ explains executive producer Steve Condie.
Sadly, drummer Charlie Watts died in August last year, and so his episode is made up of archive footage of an intensely private man, who was in many ways the hidden force of the Stones. And it’s clear from his bandmates’ conversations just how much they miss him.
‘It was quite hard for them all to talk about Charlie. This was only a few months after he died, and it was the first time they’d really sat down in an interview where they have been asked to reflect on him. You’re getting people to speak about someone who was as close as family, working together for that long, and being so bonded,’ says Steve, whose documentaries include 2019’s Thatcher: A Very British Revolution.
My Life As A Rolling Stone, narrated by actress Sienna Miller, features special interviews with those who knew the Stones when they started out, like Tina Turner and Lulu, and those they influenced, including Chrissie Hynde, Sheryl Crow and Guns N’ Roses star Slash.
As a long-time fan, Steve admits to being a bit starstruck during filming. ‘I mean, I’m not going to pretend otherwise! I know people always say they have a certain charisma – and there’s no doubt all four of them have got that.
‘But they were actually incredibly welcoming, helpful and co-operative. You know, they more than did their turn for us.’
All four episodes also available on BBC iPlayer from Saturday, plus The Rolling Stones: Live collection