#AD – We were gifted entry in the exhibition
The Beatles Story is located on the Royal Albert Docks & is easy to spot (and hear) with Beatles tunes pumping out & staff dressed in Sargent Pepper BRIGHT uniforms. We headed to the reception desk where we were given our audio guides (we are becoming dab hands with them this trip!) in preparation for our self-guided tour.
First up was the school days of the Beatles, how they met, their previous bands & their journey to Hamburg which would be the making of them. It looks as if we have plenty of room for this photo with the girls. But the place was BUSY! So this serves as Alan’s disclaimer that it was pretty tricky to take photos without loads of other people in the background. Still, you could take your time & repeat any sections you wanted to. As you moved around there was always something interesting to look at & the chronology worked well guiding you through the key moments in the story of the Beatles through the years.
Cavern Club & the swinging 60’s
Along the journey, there are no other staff members to be seen to ask any questions or to engage the kids. I thought this might have been a nice touch as they found concentrating on the audio guides pretty tough. Especially in the roomier parts of the exhibition like the mock up of the cavern club.
I really liked the descriptions of the cavern club on the guide and you could get a feel for just how hot & damp it would have been at full capacity at the height of Beatles-mania. We started reminiscing with the kids some gig we went to (Newcastle SU I’m looking at you!) where the sweat would evaporate off the ceiling and you’d feel a nice drip on your head…bleugh!! Cilla Black got a mention as she worked in the cafe at the club before she had her own rise with fame.
Abigail enjoyed chilling in the mock-up of the aeroplane the Beatles took back to the UK after conquering the USA. In this section, there were videos of the fans going crazy at the airport just to catch a glimpse of the guys.
Yellow Submarine
As the Beatles music got more experimental (ok and a bit weird) so did the exhibition with a section dedicated to the Yellow Submarine years with a mock-up with its own fish tank! The Sargent Pepper album cover was mocked in life-sized cardboard cutouts (as it did in the original photo) & I enjoyed having a look at the directory to see who everyone was.
The Beatles in Photographs
As we headed to the end of the exhibition we came across a big selection of Beatles photos which we good to have a nosy at. There was also a section for each member detailing their work after the band split.
The girls had a quick look in the Discovery Zone which had a giant piano (like the one in the movie Big) & some colouring in (Beatles themed) sheets & pencils to get creative with.
We spent around an hour walking through The Beatles Experience & had a nice time but I’m not sure how much the girls enjoyed it. For any fan of the Beatles, they will enjoy reliving their youths, seeing some original memorabilia or grabbing some souvenirs in the well-stocked shop. The exhibition worked well alongside the John & Yoko exhibition at the Museum of Liverpool which I previously blogged about & is within a 5-minute walk.
Additional Information
Address: Britannia Vaults – Royal Albert Dock – Liverpool – L3 4AD
Website: https://www.beatlesstory.com
Opening Hours: 9am to 6pm in the peak summer months. See website for more details. Souvenir & Coffee shop the Fab4 open daily serving hot drinks, cakes & snacks.
Entry: Family ticket on the day we visited was £45.00. Concession & single tickets available.
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