The Beatles' shared sense of humour helps explain their appeal during the 1960s and endurance in the following decades. Each member was skilled in irony, sarcasm, wordplay, and other nonsense. Their songs consistently show how the music itself is informed by comedic genres, including parody, satire, surrealism, and observational humour. The band demonstrated a gift for timing and deadpan wit in feature films and interviews reveal an aptitude for self-awareness, improvisation, and winning one-liners. The Beatles were indeed masters of play, a point illustrated by now-iconic photo shoots and musical experimentation. Subsequent artists and fans have taken these cues, engaging in their own forms of Beatle play.

The Beatles and Humour explores the band's humour, comedy, and other forms of play in both music and non-musical discourse. Chapters situate the Beatles within the history of British arts, while also considering the diverse components and effects of their output and reception from the 1960s to today.