Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s childhood homes preserved

No one can argue that the Beatles are one of the most successful and influential bands of modern time. Their music has inspired countless artists and only time will tell how long their presence will live on. The fact that the childhood homes of Paul McCartney and John Lennon now have a place in history too is no surprise.

The English Heritage Foundation recently decided to preserve McCartney’s house on Forthlin Road where he lived for nine years in his youth as well as the 1930s duplex house nearby where Lennon lived with his aunt and uncle. The houses have been listed as Grade II buildings and this listing celebrate the historical association and cultural significance of the Beatles to the UK as opposed to the typical architectural aesthetic. Now the homes cannot be demolished and they cannot be altered unless there is permission from local authorities. As many would guess, both houses are in Liverpool.

The homes of McCartney and Lennon were scenes of rehearsal, creative collaboration, production and the very formation of the Beatles in the artists’ early days. The pair wrote “Please Please Me,” the band’s first hit, in Lennon’s house and they composed possibly 100 songs in McCartney’s home, which had an enclosed porch to ensure that McCartney’s aunt Mimi wouldn’t be disturbed by the band’s practicing.

However, the homes of George Harrison and Ringo Starr were not preserved by the English Heritage Foundation, not as a slight, but because they were not historically significant to the band.

Now that McCarthy and Lennon’s houses are preserved, they can be added to list of destinations for Beatle-fan pilgrimages. The homes will be open to visitors during certain parts of the year and both will certainly become popular places for both avid Beatle-fans and tourists alike.