Liverpool is preparing to unveil a new tourist attraction dedicated to The Beatles. It will cover 100,000 square feet (approximately 9,300 sq. m). Musician Paul McCartney called the project "extraordinary," while Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, said it demonstrates "exactly the level of ambition we would like to see more often across the United Kingdom," reports UNN, citing The Guardian.
The opening is scheduled for 2028. The project will be a major redevelopment of The Beatles Story museum, which has operated at Liverpool’s Royal Albert Dock complex since 1990. The attraction is now coming under the ownership of Apple Corps, which belongs to the band’s members. As a result, The Beatles Story will become the first official space for Beatles fans in their hometown.
The museum will also change locations: it will move to the former St John’s Market shopping centre, located near Lime Street railway station. The building has been vacant since it closed in 2024. The new premises will allow the museum to expand to four times its current size.
In addition, Apple Corps announced plans to take over and renovate Liverpool’s second-tallest building — the St Johns Beacon tower (450 feet, or approximately 137 metres, high). It has also stood vacant since 2024, when the observation deck closed and the radio stations that rented space there moved out. The tower, located next to the redeveloped museum, will become a separate tourist attraction dedicated to The Beatles’ fantastical psychedelic animated film "Yellow Submarine". The new version of The Beatles Story exhibition is being presented as a "multi-hour adventure." It will recreate iconic locations from the band’s history: from the Liverpool homes where the musicians spent their childhoods to the legendary Cavern club and the nightlife venues of Hamburg, where they gained their first experience. The exhibition will also include the Abbey Road studio, Shea Stadium in New York — where Beatlemania provoked such a deafening scream from fans that the musicians themselves could not hear their own playing — as well as the building on London’s Savile Row, whose roof hosted the band’s final concert in 1969.
Paul McCartney said: "It is incredible and moving for me that people are still interested in our story. It is very heartening that The Beatles Story and the Beacon complex in the very heart of Liverpool are undergoing such exciting changes. I love Liverpool. It is part of me, part of what The Beatles are. If someone had told us about this when we were just starting out, we would never have believed it."
Ringo Starr also welcomed the plans: "It’s great to be part of this — deep down, I’m still a Liverpudlian (a Scouser). Liverpool was and remains a city of music. And now we’re expanding The Beatles Story… absolutely fantastic! The music lives on."
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A new charitable organisation, the Apple Corps Liverpool Trust, has also been established. It will receive a portion of the proceeds from every ticket sold, which will be used to support initiatives for local musicians.
Andy Burnham praised the plans for Liverpool, noting that they demonstrate "exactly the level of ambition we would like to see across Britain: supporting what our great cities do best and turning their global reputations into new jobs, opportunities and economic growth." He also stressed that the project’s charitable component would help "the next generation of young artists — wherever they grow up — believe that there is a path from their own bedroom, rehearsal room or local music venue to the heights of global recognition."
Liverpool Mayor Steve Rotheram said: "People are already travelling halfway around the world to visit the birthplace of the four boys who shook the planet. These plans take this incredible magnetism to a new level, creating a world-class visitor attraction. It will give millions more fans a reason to make a pilgrimage to their spiritual home, to see the city with their own eyes and experience its music and culture."
The project is being carried out by Apple Corps in cooperation with Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, with the support of the UK government. Financial details of the project and the terms of the partnership have not yet been disclosed.
Apple Corps chief executive Tom Greene compared the plans to Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate in Memphis or Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme park in Tennessee: "It will be a world-class destination in the heart of the city — right where it all began."
Greene is also overseeing the creation of another official Beatles attraction: the redevelopment of the building at 3 Savile Row, where their final rooftop concert took place. The seven-storey museum, scheduled to open in 2027, will give visitors access to the roof. It will also recreate the recording studio where the band worked on the album "Let It Be", as well as house exhibitions from the Apple Corps archive and temporary displays.
These plans are part of wide-ranging efforts to preserve and promote The Beatles’ legacy. In particular, they include an ambitious project — a series of four biographical films directed by Sam Mendes, each telling the story of one of the band members. The films, which are currently in production, will be released in 2028, while sets and props from them will be used to recreate historic locations in a new version of "The Beatles Story" exhibition.
The band’s Hamburg period is explored in a separate project — the BBC drama series "Hamburg Days", written by Jamie Carragher (the author of the series "Succession"). At the same time, The Beatles’ music catalogue continues to be reissued: an expanded edition of the album "Rubber Soul" (1965) reached number two in the UK charts at the beginning of this month.
The Beatles are a powerful tourist magnet for Liverpool: according to a 2016 study, the band brings £82 million to the local economy each year. The current version of "The Beatles Story" exhibition — which includes such artefacts as George Harrison’s first guitar and John Lennon’s glasses — has contributed to this success. Over the past two years, the museum has received a "VisitEngland" award for excellence each time.