Montreal wasn't John & Yoko’s first choice for their North American Bed-In ... it wasn't even their second. They originally wanted to go to New York, but that was nixed due to John’s previous marijuana arrest. They then tried the Bahamas, but John couldn’t imagine staying in bed for a week with all the heat and humidity. So on May 26, 1969, the couple checked into Montreal's Queen Elizabeth Hotel for a Bed-In to protest the violence that was going on around the world. 

During their week in Montreal, John & Yoko hosted many people, including American civil rights advocate Dick Gregory, comedian Tommy Smothers and Lil Abner cartoonist Al Capp.  According to legend while chatting with John on May 30th, Toronto Rabbi Abraham Feinberg said, “John, you’ve got to give peace chance,” words which caught fire in Lennon’s imagination. The next day the call went out for recording gear. Oversized lyrics were stuck on the walls and an immortal peace anthem was born.

Tune in Monday, June 1st for a live broadcast of Derringer In The Morning from Suite 1742 at The Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal as The Mighty Q revisits a defining moment in Classic Rock History.

From now until June 1st, over 200 of Gerry Deiter’s photos from John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Bed-In For Peace will be on display at the Bulger Gallery at 1026 Queen Street West in Toronto. Join Kim Mitchell live on location at the Bulger Gallery on Monday, June 1st from 2p – 7pm and check out the amazing photos which are captured in the new book, Give Peace A Chance: John and Yoko’s Bed-In For Peace. Click here for more information on this book, "Give Peace a Chance: John and Yoko's Bed-in for Peace"