LONDON (AP) — The birthplace of The Beatles is about to get even more of the Fab Four. Plans were announced Tuesday for a huge new visitor attraction that backers say will give Liverpool a tourist draw about its famous sons to rival Elvis Presley’s Graceland and Dolly Parton’s Dollywood. Apple Corps Ltd., the company that oversees The Beatles’ business interests, said an expanded version of The Beatles Story museum is coming to the center of Liverpool in 2028. It’s scheduled to open soon after the release of Sam Mendes’ quartet of feature films about John, Paul, George and Ringo, which are expected to unleash a new wave of global interest in the band that transformed rock ‘n’ roll. The plan will see Apple Corps take over The Beatles Story and move it from its current home in Liverpool’s docklands to the former St. John’s Market, a 100,000-square-foot (9,290-square-meter) site across from the city’s main Lime Street train station. Apple Corps said the new venue will use “immersive technology, original artifacts and spectacular reconstructed sets” to take visitors from the band members’ childhoods in postwar Liverpool through their hardscrabble years in the bars of Hamburg, Germany, to the explosion of “Beatlemania” and global fame. Sets and props from Mendes' movies will create versions of Liverpool’s Cavern Club, where the band got its start; the famous Abbey Road studios in London; and Shea Stadium, the site of their legendary 1965 performance. The nearby St Johns Beacon, a 400-foot (122-meter) former radio tower, will be transformed into a tourist attraction inspired by the band’s song and animated movie “Yellow Submarine,” offering views over the city. “Just like Graceland or Dollywood, it’s fitting that The Beatles will have a world class destination for fans to visit in the center of the city where the story started,” Apple Corps chief executive Tom Greene said. Apple Corps said a portion of the ticket revenue will support a charity set up to nurture new artists in Liverpool. The two surviving Beatles welcomed the development. Paul McCartney said the band’s success “couldn’t have happened without Liverpool and I can’t wait for people to be able to step into our story and share the experience.” Ringo Starr said “Liverpool was, and still is, music city.” The announcement is the latest chapter in a Beatles boom, 56 years after the band’s breakup. Apple Corps has already announced that a new fan experience will open in late 2027 in the band’s former London headquarters at 3 Savile Row, whose rooftop was the site of The Beatles’ last public performance in 1969. Mendes is directing a quartet of biopics starring Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison, Paul Mescal as McCartney and Barry Keoghan as Starr. All are due for release in April 2028. The legacy of The Beatles has helped transform Liverpool into a culture and nightlife destination, reviving the city’s economy after decades of decline following the closure of its docks. Mike Jones, a Beatles expert at the University of Liverpool, said the “double boost” of the films and attractions will bring in many more Beatles fans. “I’m not sure that the city’s quite prepared for it,” he said, calling it both a risk and an opportunity. “What we have to resist is the Disneyfication of Liverpool, the Disneyfication of the Beatles." That said, there's a lot more that people should know about the band and its legacy, Jones said. “There’s a rich story to be told about the relationship between Liverpool and the Beatles, a very rich story," he said. "And I’m not sure that story’s been told." Jill Lawless, The Associated Press
