The Beatles have always been big in Liverpool, but the Fab Four’s legacy in the port city is about to get even bigger. The Beatles Story museum is set to change location in 2028, quadrupling its footprint and gaining a 138-meter tower offering a panoramic view in the process, as well as coinciding with the release of a new film about the supergroup.
Currently, the museum site is at the city’s Royal Albert Dock, but Apple Corps, the company John, Paul, George, and Ringo created in 1968, has announced the attraction is moving to new premises at the former St Johns Market in St Johns Shopping Centre, opposite Liverpool’s iconic Lime Street railway station.
The market and surrounding precinct were designed in 1969 by James A. Roberts. The architects replaced an 1822 neoclassical building with a Brutalist structure whose concrete forms were beloved by some and seen as an eyesore by others. It is now undergoing renovations that its website says will mean it is “stripped of its 1970s feel.”
The Beatles museum will move in by 2028, taking up 10,000m2 and comprising original artefacts, sets from a new four-part film by Sam Mendes due for release in spring 2028, and interactive displays intended to immerse visitors in the world of the Beatles, from their modest Liverpudlian childhoods to worldwide fame.
Visitors will be invited to explore a recreation of the legendary Liverpool Cavern, cradle of the Merseybeat sound. A mock-up of London’s Abbey Road Studios, where the band recorded nearly all their work and whose exterior zebra crossing features (in) on the album of the same name, will also be there, alongside other notable locations that peppered their journey.
Also forming part of the Beatles odyssey in the St Johns development will be the St Johns Beacon, or Radio City Tower. Oddly for a structure that is Liverpool’s second tallest, standing 138 metres tall, it will host an underwater-themed, Yellow Submarine-inspired attraction, offering 360-degree vistas.
It is anticipated the dual project will not only tap into the ongoing Beatles fanbase, but also new interest sparked by the upcoming Sam Mendes production, as well as today’s general popularity of music-driven travel and tourism.
Guests will be able to buy combi-tickets for the two new venues, and sales will go towards the Apple Corps Liverpool Trust, which raises funds to support new local talent and culture. The City Council, the Region Combined Authority, and the national UK government are all on board, and UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has praised the “ambition” behind the scheme, which he said he wanted to see more of across Britain, “backing the things our great cities do best and turning that global reputation into jobs, opportunity and growth.”
Surviving Beatles Paul and Ringo have expressed enthusiasm for the new museum too. Sir Paul McCartney has said he is “humbled” that people are still interested in the band, and hailed the development as a way for fans to “step into our story,” while Starr noted Liverpool’s enduring status as “Music City.” Liverpool, which introduced a tourist tax in 2025, attracted over 36.3 million visitors that year, an increase of more than 12%, achieving 3.3 million overnight stays.
