The break-up of The Beatles, one of the most popular and influential musical groups in history, has become almost as much of a legend as the band itself or the music they created while together. The Beatles were active from their formation in 1960 to the disintegration of the group in 1970. The break-up itself was a cumulative process throughout 1969, marked by a public acknowledgement from Paul McCartney in a November 1969 interview. The final announcement that The Beatles had broken up came in a McCartney press release on April 9, 1970.