Apple Corps, the company The Beatles founded in 1968, announced on Tuesday 20 October that The Beatles Story – the attraction dedicated to the band that has been based at Liverpool’s Albert Dock since 1990 – will move in 2028 to the former St Johns Market in St Johns Shopping Centre, opposite Lime Street station. The new site will cover around 100,000 sq ft (roughly 9,300 square metres), more than four times its current footprint.
The multi-hour visit will combine immersive technology, original artefacts and reconstructed sets to tell the group’s story in order: post-war Liverpool, Hamburg, Beatlemania and international fame. Recreated locations will include The Cavern, Abbey Road, Shea Stadium and Savile Row. Some of those recreations will use sets and props from ‘The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event’, Sam Mendes‘ four-film project starring Harris Dickinson, Paul Mescal, Joseph Quinn and Barry Keoghan as John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, which Sony Pictures will release in cinemas worldwide in April 2028. The attraction will open shortly afterwards.
Apple Corps is also taking over St Johns Beacon, the city’s second-tallest building, where it will create a ‘Yellow Submarine’-themed viewing experience with 360-degree views across Liverpool. It will run as a standalone attraction, with combined tickets available alongside The Beatles Story. Before the move, Apple Corps will take over the running of the attraction at its current home in 2027. The Beatles Story has been owned since 2008 by Merseytravel, the publicly owned transport executive of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, and welcomed more than 315,000 visitors in 2019. Financial terms have not been disclosed.
It will be the first official fan experience Apple Corps operates in Liverpool and only its second permanent one, after 3 Savile Row in London. That attraction, announced in May, is due to open at the end of 2027 in the Mayfair building that housed one of the company’s earliest headquarters, and on whose roof The Beatles played their final live performance in 1969. Every ticket sold in Liverpool will contribute to the Apple Corps Liverpool Trust, a charitable initiative supporting emerging Liverpool artists and local cultural projects; further details are to follow. In August, Apple Corps also signed a global merchandise, licensing and e-commerce partnership with Universal Music Group, which has held the band’s recorded catalogue since 2012.
“I find it incredible and humbling that people are still interested in our story,” said Paul McCartney. “I love Liverpool. It’s part of who I am, it’s part of who The Beatles are.” He added: “If you’d told us this was going to happen when we were hanging out and getting started, we’d never have believed it.” Ringo Starr remembered Saturdays spent with Roy Trafford at the Bodega and then the Cavern. “Liverpool was, and still is, music city,” he said, adding that he loves that “proceeds from every ticket will go back to support new Liverpool artists”. “Deep down I am still a scouser,” he said.
Tom Greene, Apple Corps’ chief executive since September 2025, said “Liverpool birthed the greatest band in history” and that the project “marks a new chapter” for the company. Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram said “The Beatles belong to the world – but Liverpool will always be home”, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the band “one of the greatest examples of what Britain can give to the world”. Liverpool City Council leader Liam Robinson described the plans as an opportunity “to kick-start the regeneration of an important gateway into our city centre”. The proposals were drawn up with the council and the Combined Authority, with support from central government.
