Where
The Magical History Museum bills itself as “the world’s most authentic Beatles museum”. It is in Liverpool city centre, in a five-storey Victorian warehouse on Mathew Street, yards from the Cavern Club, the venue where the Fab Four first sprang to fame in 1961. The museum’s name references the Beatles’ 1967 album Magical Mystery Tour.
What
Opened
On 20 July. Best bought the building in October 2017. It had housed a series of commercial ventures over the years, including a bar and a pizza restaurant. Two teams of builders worked around the clock to get the museum ready. “At one point, we were filling six eight-tonne skips a day,” Best says of the building work.
Collection
There are more than 1,200 items spanning the Beatles’ career. The museum displays 300 objects at any given time, taking visitors from the band’s beginnings in 1959, though Beatlemania and the psychedelic 1960s, to the band’s break-up in 1970.
“From clothes to instruments, posters to furniture – we have it,” says Best. He is aware the Beatles are heavily marketed in Liverpool, so it’s important the museum offers a bit more than other attractions. “Some executives from Apple Corp came to Liverpool to visit Beatles sites and declared our museum to be a class act,” Best says.
Highlights
“The highlights depend on the individual,” says Best. “Everyone has their favourite Beatle. Maybe Paul McCartney’s bass speaker wouldn’t mean as much to a George Harrison fan as George’s Futurama guitar would, and John Lennon’s Sgt Pepper medals wouldn’t mean the same to a Ringo Starr fan as the drum stool on which he parked his bottom when hammering out those hits.
There are many highlights as the collection has never been accessible to the public before. My highlight is either the Premier drum kit that Pete played from 1960 to 1962 or one of Stuart Sutcliffe’s sketches.” Sutcliffe, sometimes called the fifth Beatle, played bass for the band in the early 60s. He died in 1962.
Help at hand
It’s a Beatles family affair in terms of staff. The six employees include Sutcliffe’s nephew, McCartney’s cousin, Lennon’s cousin and Pete’s nephew. “This wasn’t planned,” says Best. “Nobody was more surprised than us when their lineage came to light.”
Sticky moment
“We haven’t been open long enough to list any catastrophes,” Best says. But he does admit to sustaining injuries when getting the building ready: he managed to get a three-inch nail stuck in his foot.
Survival tips
“Be authentic, be real, be true to whatever your museum is,” Best says. “I’ve seen plenty where, for example, a guitar is the same model of the guitar someone played. I don’t care about the same model. I want to see the actual guitar.”
Visitors
“Attendance has been steady and growing from week to week,” according to Best. The museum has been heartened by visitor feedback and reviews. “Of course, we’d like a queue down the road and we hope that will come.”
Budget
The museum has not sought public funding. Adult admission is £15 (concessions £10), with children paying £7.50 and under-fives going free.
Future plans
Marketing is important, Best says. “People won’t come if they don’t know it’s there. We have got off to a good start but don’t intend to rest on our laurels.” The museum intends to change 20% of the collection every January to keep the displays fresh. “We are constantly tweaking something. We are proud
of what we have achieved. It’s a passion for everyone involved, from us to them, from me to you,” he says, in paraphrase of a Beatles lyric.
Louise Gray is a freelance writer
www.magicalhistorymuseum.com
The Magical History Museum bills itself as “the world’s most authentic Beatles museum”. It is in Liverpool city centre, in a five-storey Victorian warehouse on Mathew Street, yards from the Cavern Club, the venue where the Fab Four first sprang to fame in 1961. The museum’s name references the Beatles’ 1967 album Magical Mystery Tour.
What
The privately owned museum was created by Roag Best, a Liverpudlian who has an interesting relationship to the city’s most famous cultural creation – his brother Pete was the first Beatles drummer before he was replaced by Ringo Starr.
Best’s father, Neil Aspinall, also had a career with the Beatles, first as a roadie and later as the head of the band’s company, Apple Corp. Best was born in 1962 and grew up around the Beatles: his earliest memories include visiting the musicians in their houses and at Abbey Road Studios in London. The museum showcases its collections in an airy, open-plan design.
Opened
On 20 July. Best bought the building in October 2017. It had housed a series of commercial ventures over the years, including a bar and a pizza restaurant. Two teams of builders worked around the clock to get the museum ready. “At one point, we were filling six eight-tonne skips a day,” Best says of the building work.
Collection
There are more than 1,200 items spanning the Beatles’ career. The museum displays 300 objects at any given time, taking visitors from the band’s beginnings in 1959, though Beatlemania and the psychedelic 1960s, to the band’s break-up in 1970.
“From clothes to instruments, posters to furniture – we have it,” says Best. He is aware the Beatles are heavily marketed in Liverpool, so it’s important the museum offers a bit more than other attractions. “Some executives from Apple Corp came to Liverpool to visit Beatles sites and declared our museum to be a class act,” Best says.
Highlights
“The highlights depend on the individual,” says Best. “Everyone has their favourite Beatle. Maybe Paul McCartney’s bass speaker wouldn’t mean as much to a George Harrison fan as George’s Futurama guitar would, and John Lennon’s Sgt Pepper medals wouldn’t mean the same to a Ringo Starr fan as the drum stool on which he parked his bottom when hammering out those hits.
There are many highlights as the collection has never been accessible to the public before. My highlight is either the Premier drum kit that Pete played from 1960 to 1962 or one of Stuart Sutcliffe’s sketches.” Sutcliffe, sometimes called the fifth Beatle, played bass for the band in the early 60s. He died in 1962.
Help at hand
It’s a Beatles family affair in terms of staff. The six employees include Sutcliffe’s nephew, McCartney’s cousin, Lennon’s cousin and Pete’s nephew. “This wasn’t planned,” says Best. “Nobody was more surprised than us when their lineage came to light.”
Sticky moment
“We haven’t been open long enough to list any catastrophes,” Best says. But he does admit to sustaining injuries when getting the building ready: he managed to get a three-inch nail stuck in his foot.
Survival tips
“Be authentic, be real, be true to whatever your museum is,” Best says. “I’ve seen plenty where, for example, a guitar is the same model of the guitar someone played. I don’t care about the same model. I want to see the actual guitar.”
Visitors
“Attendance has been steady and growing from week to week,” according to Best. The museum has been heartened by visitor feedback and reviews. “Of course, we’d like a queue down the road and we hope that will come.”
Budget
The museum has not sought public funding. Adult admission is £15 (concessions £10), with children paying £7.50 and under-fives going free.
Future plans
Marketing is important, Best says. “People won’t come if they don’t know it’s there. We have got off to a good start but don’t intend to rest on our laurels.” The museum intends to change 20% of the collection every January to keep the displays fresh. “We are constantly tweaking something. We are proud
of what we have achieved. It’s a passion for everyone involved, from us to them, from me to you,” he says, in paraphrase of a Beatles lyric.
Louise Gray is a freelance writer
www.magicalhistorymuseum.com