Woolton’s Historical Highlights, from St Peter’s Church to the Elephant Pub

Trace the ancient Iron Age origins of Woolton, fondly considered a picture-perfect English village by locals, and discover the role it played in the birth of the legendary band, The Beatles. You’ll find out about the real Eleanor Rigby and whether or not she inspired The Beatles’ hit song of the same name. You’ll also have the opportunity to admire St Peter’s Church, and hear how Marie Curie Hospice is connected to one of Woolton’s two famous elephants!

Along the way, I’ll show you how the Irish potato famine shaped the village. And, with the help of my parents, life-long residents Eileen and Jacky, we’ll reveal the complicated socio-political undercurrents that lie beneath the quiet, picturesque streets. They’ll share their early memories of the village and tell you how catholics, angelicans, methodists and other religions coexist here, despite their differences.

On this tour, you can look forward to hearing about:

• How the Iron Age settlement, Camp Hill, led to the establishment of Woolton
• The quarries and the Victorian slums that were hidden from tourists in order to preserve the image of a picture-perfect English village
• The Woolton Picture House, Liverpool’s oldest cinema
• John Lennon’s first encounter with Paul McCartney
• What happened when a charity stunt inspired by the Elephant Pub went wrong
• The Quarrymen, a band whose members once included John Lennon and Paul McCartney, which used to play at the Village Club
• How the village was mobbed by thousands of fans when Cilla Black married ‘her Bobby’ at St Mary’s Church
• The many iterations of Woolton Hall

With a mixture of history and social stories, we’ll bring Woolton to life and, by the end of the tour, you too will hopefully love and know the village as well as any local.