London: Beatle Homes
The Beatles lived in the Hotel President in Bloomsbury in the summer of
1963 after making the move from Liverpool to London. They all moved
into a flat at 57 Green Street, near Hyde Park, in the Autumn of
1963, the only true home shared by all four Beatles. John,
Cynthia and baby Julian soon moved to their own place on Emperor's
Gate (the building was since torn down to make way for the new office
building at the rear of
the picture).
Brian Epstein moved into the top floor apartment of Whaddon House in late
1963, followed shortly by George and Ringo, who shared an apartment here for
over
a year. Whaddon House is located on William Mews, a small,
private street near Harrods and the Knightsbridge tube stop. Ringo moved
into a two-level apartment on the ground floor and basement of an elegant
building at 34 Montagu Square in 1965. Ringo moved again later in that year,
but
retained the lease on Montagu Square and loaned his apartment to several
friends over the next few years, most notably Jimi Hendrix and John &
Yoko, who lived here in 1968. (This is also where John & Yoko were busted
for drugs in October 1968.)
57 Wimpole Street,
Marylebone |
7 Cavendish
Avenue, St. John's Wood |
Paul McCartney left Green Street to move into a top floor room on
Wimpole Street at the family home of his girlfriend, actress Jane
Asher. John and Paul wrote several songs, including "I Want to Hold Your
Hand," in the basement music room of the Asher home. In 1966, Paul moved to
his own
home in St. John's Wood close to Abbey Road and EMI Studios. The Beatles
frequently gathered here before or after sessions at Abbey Road.
Kenwood
|
Sunny Heights
|
John, George and Ringo all moved into large homes in the distant, wooded
"stockbroker belt" suburbs of Surrey in the mid-sixties, leaving Paul the
only true "London
Beatle." John and Ringo both bought homes in the exclusive St.
George's Hill Estate in Weybridge. John lived in "Kenwood" with
Cynthia and Julian from 1964 until their divorce in 1968. Ringo and wife
Maureen lived in "Sunny Heights" from 1965 through 1968. George bought a
home ("Kinfauns") in the Claremont Estate in nearby Esher (below).
Kinfauns
|
Friar Park entrance
|
George Harrison, meanwhile, moved out of London to the Claremont Estate in
Esher, not far from Weybridge, in 1965. He lived in "Kinfauns" until
purchasing the rambling Friar Park estate in Henley-on-Thames in March
1970. While he owned homes elsewhere (most fondly on the Hawaiian
Island of Maui), Friar Park remained his main home, and site of his
recording studio, until his death in
2001.
View up Chapel Street
|
24 Chapel Street, Belgravia
|
Brian Epstein moved, in January 1965, from Whaddon House to Chapel Street in
Belgravia, an
embassy district and one of the most exclusive areas in London. Many
memorable parties were held at 24 Chapel Street, including the release
party for "Sgt. Pepper," and Brian Epstein died here in August 1967.
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