Reading time:- 13 minutes
The International Beatles Week (IBW) is a festival that has been running in Liverpool since 1977, and the chances are you’ve never heard of it. But, what is it exactly and is it any good? Well, I went along to investigate, and discovered it was surprisingly interesting (for me at least).
The Beatles and Covid
The main reason I know anything about the IBW is because of Covid. Yes, the Chinese and the CIA have a great deal to answer for, and it’s because of them we’re here talking about the Beatles.
St. Paul’s
Back in 2021, in a recently post-Covid world, Vikki found a lovely 4* hotel next door to St. Paul’s Cathedral for next to nothing, including breakfast. As my birthday happened to be on 25th August that year (as it is most years), we had a little trip to London for a few days and discovered it was deserted.
Bank Holiday
Yes, I know; the words Bank Holiday and deserted are rarely found in the same sentence, but there you are. Covid had devastating effects on many people, but the upside was 4* hotels at 90 quid a night. It was so good I wrote a blog on it.
Lees Blogosphere – A Walk Around St. Paul’s
Beatley
Anyway, the next year we thought we’d do the same, employing a bold “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” strategy. But in a not-so-recently-post-covid-world the rooms were now £200 a night, so it was broke and we did fix it by not going. So, as an alternative, I suggested we go to Liverpool and do a “Beatley” Tour.
If it ain’t broke…
Vikki, surprisingly keen asked what I had in mind for this tour of the North Country and after a moment’s thought, I said, “Well, you know, go to Liverpool and do stuff.” “And that’s it, is it?” she queried. I thought about it a bit longer. “I know,” I said enthusiastically. “You organise something and I’ll tell you whether it’s any good or not.” I smiled. “Like usual you mean?” she replied. “Well” I said. “if it ain’t broke….”
Bossing It
To her credit, Vikki is the boss when it comes to booking holidays and hotels, especially when she’s using someone else’s money. That’s when she really comes into her own.
A Great Discovery
And this is when Vikki discovered the International Beatles Week, and that it took place around the time of my birthday. We didn’t know what it was or how it worked so we just booked a hotel, drove up to Liverpool, had a look round, and very pleasant it was too. So, we did the same last year too. And all because of Covid.
Ironbridge
So, earlier this year I said to Vikki, let’s do the IBW thing properly this time and she agreed. And she promptly booked a hotel in a place called Ironbridge. In Shropshire. 100 miles away from Liverpool.
What?!?
Somewhat befuddled by her logic, I said “Why have you done that?” “Well, because it’s on the way,” she replied. “Yes, but Liverpool is at the other end of the country. Technically speaking, everywhere is on the way,” I explained. “Ok, because I want to go there,” she replied. I guess I could have worked that out on my own. You can probably work out on your own too, why Ironbridge is called Ironbridge. Yes, because of a large metal structure spanning a river.
UNESCO
And just so you know, Ironbridge (and the surrounding area) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I know, who’d’ve thought that? But it is. Because it is considered to be the birthplace of Jesus…sorry, the Beatles…no, the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.
Industry
I’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions regarding the role of industry on the destruction of communities, humanity, and the planet, but some may say it’s akin to celebrating the birthplace of Hitler, Stalin, or even Jedward, as all have been guilty of the immeasurable suffering of millions.
Shop till you Drop
In Ironbridge, there are all sorts of Museums, Factories, Victorian Villages, and Iron Bridges to explore. There are some fab (four) walks too if that’s your thing. And shops. There’s a fabulous bookshop, a shop dedicated to Christmas and also a shop dedicated to Doughnuts too.
So, all tastes are clearly catered for, assuming of course, your tastes don’t veer too far from Books, Christmas or Doughnuts, which is lucky, because mine don’t.
Kiln in the name of…
We even got to stay in a room with a glass floor and a kiln underneath. Suffice to say neither of us got up in the night to use the facilities.
Youth
We popped into a cafe for a coffee (which was just ok although the cafe was nice). The thing that really bugs me though, is when you see teens glued to their phones, apparently unable or unwilling to talk or engage in anything around them.
It’s even worse when they’re related.
Liverpool
So, eventually we made it to Liverpool and the Radisson Red, next door to Liverpool Lime Street Station.
We discovered a carpark in the centre of Liverpool which charged only £6 for 24 hours parking, which is something of a coup, if you’ve ever parked in Liverpool (or any big city). Admittedly the car was on bricks when we returned, which was quite helpful as it meant no one could drive it away (including us).
Eccles
Later in the evening we had a visit from my son Alex, who was at the Metropolitan University in Manchester doing a Masters degree. Living in Eccles meant he was only a 30 minute train ride from Liverpool Lime St, and we showed him round the city on Thursday and Friday.
Column
Whilst we walked around the Knowledge Quarter, we noticed (you can’t miss it) a 100ft column with a dignitary on top.
Vikki: “Who’s that?”
Me: “Who’s what?”
Vikki: “Him. Up there. On the column.”
Me: “I can’t really see from here, but the general rule of thumb is, if he’s holding a sword it’s the Duke of Wellington. And if he’s holding a trumpet it’s Duke Ellington.”
Silence….
Vikki: “Who’s Duke Ellington?”
Me: “Good grief! This is my best material. It’s all I’ve got and you come back with ‘who’s Duke Ellington?’ Have you ever seen a bloke with a trumpet up on top of a column?”
Vikki:” No.”
Me: “So why do you think he might have a trumpet?”
Vikki: ” I didn’t. You just said if he had a sword he’d be the Duke of Wellington, and if he had a trumpet he’d be the Duke of Ellerington.”
Me: “Ellington. It’s Ellington.”
Vikki: “Well, ok, Ellington. You still haven’t told me who he is.”
Me: “Duke Ellington, was a jazz musician, band leader, played with Ella Fitzgerald, the greatest singer ever. Him.”
Vikki: “Oh, that one.”
Me: “Yes, that one.”
Vikki: “So, why did you say he was up on that column then?”
Me: “I didn’t. It was just a play on words. Wellington – Ellington. They sound similar but ordinarily you’d never mix up an English Duke in full military regalia with a black jazz trumpet player from the Mississippi delta, would you.”2
Vikki: “No, I suppose not. Is that why it’s funny then?”
Me: “Yes, sort of.”
Silence.
Vikki:” Shall we get a coffee now?”
Me: “Yeah, go on then.”
Quarrymen
In the evening we had tickets to see the Quarrymen at St. Peter’s Church Hall in Woolton, Liverpool. For anyone with a smattering of knowledge of Beatles history, this really is the birthplace of the Beatles, as the legend goes, when John Lennon was 16 he had a skiffle band and in July 1957 they played at St. Peter’s Church Hall at the village fete.3
By an incredible coincidence, a friend of John’s called Ivan Vaughan happened to have another friend who also played guitar and invited him to the fete. This friend was a 15 year-old lad called Paul McCartney.
Twenty Flight Bonk
By way of an intro, McCartney played Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty Flight Rock” left-handed on a right-handed guitar and suddenly he was in the band. For the record (ha-ha), I don’t believe Twenty Flight Rock is strictly about climbing twenty flights of stairs to do some rock ‘n’ roll dancing with your girlfriend.
Originals
The Quarrymen were wonderful and both Rod Davis and Colin Hanton are original members. There’s lots of talking, reminiscing and anecdotes about the Beatles early days interspersed with some songs. Or is it the other way round?
Convention
On Sunday we went to the IBW Convention at the Adelphi Hotel. Here, once you get in, you can see loads of Beatles tribute acts from across the globe (yes it truly is international), spread across four stages. The tributes we saw were from South America, Kyrgyzstan, Japan, the USA and one from England. We also saw various other acts, plus some guest speakers.
Direct from Japan, The Liverbirds
Hats
David Bedford, the bass player in the Quarrymen is also an author of a number of Beatles books. He spoke about his new book coming out soon and he introduced a friend of John Lennon’s from his art school days called Helen Anderson. She designed the leather hat Lennon wore around 64/65 which became synonymous with the Beatles in that period.
Hooked
I was wondering how interesting a 30 minute talk about a hat was going to be, but when she started, I was enthralled. I could’ve listened to her all day, except they had another speaker lined up so she had to stop. A truly amazing woman and an even more amazing life.
Rome
Like, how she ended up working for one of the top couture houses in Rome because she happened to look in their window one day. And then, after being asked to provide some sketches for a Rome daily newspaper, found herself painting a portrait for the President of Ghana.
May Pang
Then we moved on to another speaker, May Pang. And some more wonderful stories. She spent a year living with John Lennon in the 70’s when he disappeared off the grid for a while. He was in LA with May Pang while Yoko Ono was back in New York. Somehow this was all fine (spoiler alert – Yoko didn’t come out of the story in a good light).
Apple
She had stories just like Helen, like the time she happened to walk past a building in New York City where the offices for Apple Records USA were located and decided she wanted a job there. So, she went in and asked if they had any vacancies and someone said, “Yeah, come back after lunch, I’ll see what I can do.” A week later she was working in the record industry. No CV, no references, no HR, just, “Can you type?” “Yes,” “Ok, type this.”
Chatting
At the convention I had a chat with David Bedford and Colin Hanton from the Quarrymen, Vikki spoke to the Japanese tribute band via Google translate (which worked exceptionally well!), and I discussed guitars with members of Britain’s Finest, a tribute band from LA (I didn’t need Google translate this time).
Aussie
We also met some Australians who had travelled over especially for the convention. It was around this time I stopped complaining about the journey up from Essex!
Locations
As for the IBW and what it is. It’s a mixture of the following:- 1. Tribute bands playing in various clubs across the city e.g. The Cavern Club, The Jacaranda, The Adelphi Hotel 2. Special tours put on for the week only, 3. Speakers and Music at the Adelphi Hotel, 4. Memorabilia fair at the Adelphi plus lots of other little attractions e.g. the Quarrymen weren’t part of Beatles week, so there are lots of independent activities going on too.
Conclusion
So, there you have it. International Beatles Week, by way of Covid, St Pauls, Ironbridge and the Quarrymen. If you’re interested, the festival is on over August Bank Holiday weekend every year. A Facebook group has more info on that.
However, if the Beatles aren’t your thing then there’s plenty to do around the city (and beyond) that bears little or no correlation to the Beatles.
Thank you for your time.
Back to blogs
- Lyrics from Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles (1967)
- For the record Duke Ellington played the Piano and came from Washington D.C. but it sort of destroys the comedic flow, so I left it in. Louis Armstrong played the Trumpet and was raised in New Orleans, so it’s likely, in the heat of battle so to speak, I may have been confusing the two.
- So far we’ve seen the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and the birthplace of The Beatles. Just one to go. Oh no. He doesn’t exist. Sorry.
- Henry Duff Lowe is the son of John Duff Lowe who played piano in the Quarry Men during the 50’s but only if the venue had a piano!
- The Hollywood Vampires drinking club included Lennon, Alice Cooper, Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon, Ringo Starr and Micky Dolenz. It is now a band including Cooper, Joe Perry (Aerosmith) and Johnny Depp.