The Four Best Beatles Statues in Liverpool

There is perhaps nothing more that says 'Liverpool' than its Fab Four sons, The Beatles. The city loves to honour John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr with statues made in their image, and indeed of the characters from their songs. Here are the top ones in the city, in my opinion:

*all photos used were taken by Ruby Smith and should not be redistributed or reused without express prior permission

Installed in 2015 and sculpted by Andrew Edwards, this statue of the Fab Four is my favourite because it is a little taller than their original heights (by about 12 inches or so, each) and features acute likenesses, unlike some of the statues on this list. It was donated by the Cavern Club to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the band's last gig played in Liverpool; the Liverpool Empire on 5th December 1965. It weighs more than 1.2 tonnes in total.

2) John Lennon at Penny Lane

This statue was sculpted by Laura Lian and cast by the Castle Foundry. The statue has toured the world but is currently installed outside St Barnabas' Church on Penny Lane. Paul McCartney sang in the choir of the church as a young boy, and his brother Mike (known professionally as Mike McGear) was married at St Barnabas'. Lian said that she hopes it will encapsulate and help to spread the 1960s/70s message of peace which John and Yoko (Ono) started. The John Lennon peace statue will remain at Penny Lane from August until February.

3) The Beatles at Cavern Walks

Located inside the Cavern Walks shopping centre which was once owned by Cavern City Tours (and thereby the Cavern Club), this statue is not a very good likeness of The Beatles, but it has ranked fairly highly on my list because of the community and love which it inspires. Cavern Walks, in its heyday, was extremely popular, but is now like a set which might be used in a remake of Scooby-Doo. However, people still come in to leave flowers, birthday cards and gifts for any member of the Fab Four, as seen here to coincide with John Lennon's 80th birthday in October 2020. These mementos are not collected or taken away, and so there is something special about seeing the love which people have given.

4) Brian Epstein at Whitechapel

Whilst not technically a Beatle, their manager Brian Epstein was described by Paul McCartney in 1997 - during an interview for a BBC documentary -as being as good as: "if anyone was the fifth Beatle, it was Brian."

This statue was installed at the end of August 2022 during International Beatleweek. The unveiling was attended by Merseybeat legends such as Beryl Marsden, as well as members of the Quarrymen, John Lennon's first band. Why the statue is in such a position is either to show Epstein walking from his NEMs shop on Whitechapel, now in Liverpool One shopping centre, to meet 'his boys' at the Pier Head, or to head to the Cavern to watch The Beatles play a show.