The Beatles Story

The museum is in a basement of the Albert Dock warehouses and runs chronologically through the band's history: the Quarrymen, Hamburg, the Cavern, the recording years and the solo careers. Reconstructions include the Casbah Coffee Club, the Cavern stage and the Abbey Road studio setting, and among the genuine objects are John Lennon's spectacles and George Harrison's first guitar. It opened on 1 May 1990 and is owned by Mersey Ferries. The Cavern Club itself on Mathew Street is a separate venue, rebuilt in the 1980s using bricks from the original, which was filled in during 1973; Penny Lane, Strawberry Field and the Lennon and McCartney childhood homes are elsewhere in the city and reached separately.

The main sights

• The genuine objects - Lennon's spectacles and Harrison's first guitar.
• The reconstructions - Casbah, Cavern stage and an Abbey Road studio setting.
• The chronological route - Quarrymen to break-up in sequence.
• The audio guide - the story told room by room.

When to go

Year-round; indoors and busiest in summer and school holidays. Booking online avoids the queue. Combining it with the Magical Mystery Tour bus or the National Trust tours of the childhood homes takes a full day.

Practical notes

It is largely reconstruction and reproduction rather than original material, and serious fans often find it thin. The basement layout is cramped when busy. The childhood homes are National Trust properties reached by separate pre-booked minibus tour, not from here.

Nearby

The Cavern Club and Mathew Street are a short walk; the Albert Dock museums adjoin.

Key facts