Disturbing video showing John Lennon mock disabled leaves fans shocked

Die-hard Beatles fans have been left shocked and appalled after disturbing video of iconic frontman John Lennon imitating a disabled person emerged on UK television.

Airing on TV show It was Alright in the 60s, the clip shows Lennon interacting with the crowd between songs by making inaudible noises with his mouth and distorting his face using a gurning movement in his jaw.

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Lennon then launches into an awkward hand-clapping motion while forcefully stomping his feet on the stage.

Viewers took to Twitter to air their outrage, one view tweeting "John Lennon mocking the disabled is disturbing to say the least."

"#Johnlennon's distasteful learning disability impressions I saw on #itwasalrightinthe60s tonight would never have been OK," another tweeted.

The video reflects a time when it wasn't uncommon for disabled people to be publicly laughed at, representative of UK disability charity Mencap Lorainne Bellamy told Daily Mail.

"As someone with a learning disability this footage shocked me and was painful to watch," she said.

"Much has changed but there is still a long way to go before the public realises people with a learning disability have the same hopes, dreams and feelings as anyone else, and should be treated with the same level of respect as anyone."

But John Lennon was not shy when it came to controversial behaviour.

In a 1968 interview with journalist Maureen Cleave he asserted that 'Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink' and that the Beatles were 'more popular than Jesus'.

In 1972, he released a song with Yoko Ono named 'Woman Is the N***** of the World', which caused international outcry over the comparison between African-American slavery and oppression of women's rights.