Ferry Cross the Mersey
In my mid/late teens the Beatles were all the rage and Beatle Mania was everywhere. Both Margaret and I, despite not having met by then and 300 miles apart both went to see their third UK tour. They were not even top of the bill, that honour was taken by Roy Orbison although apparently as their fame spread they shared top billing later in the tour. Also featured was another new group called Gerry and the Pacemakers.
All of a sudden everything seemed to come from Liverpool. Now being born in Southampton, another great Port there was always a lot of rivalry between the two places with claim and counter claim as to which was the larger port. Despite all that excitement in the early sixties neither Margaret or I have ever visited Liverpool. At long last we have put that right during a recent stay at the Club site at Southport.
Clearly Liverpool has been, and still is a grand city in the real meaning of the word. Be it the modern Liverpool One shopping area, the restored Albert Dock or the Three Graces as the main waterfront buildings are called, The Royal Liver Building, The Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building. Perhaps almost as iconic is the Ferry that crosses the Mersey from the Pier Head to either Wallasey or Birkenhead. During the day the ferries take a slight detour along the Mersey pointing out the various landmarks with a commentary and, of course, a few bars of Ferry Cross the Mersey!
No visit to Liverpool would be complete without a visit to the Cavern Club in Mathew Street. We were not alone in making such a pilgrimage and trying to get a decent photo was almost impossible. The Cavern is still a bar with live music although I imagine never as full as when the Fab Four were playing there! To get into the Club you have to go down a long circular staircase. Obviously H&S rules were different in the Beatles day!!! We very much enjoyed our trip into Liverpool on the train from Southport and I am sure only scratched the surface in what the City has to offer.
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We enjoyed a similar trip when we stayed on the Wirral site, really enjoyed seeing Liverpool, in fact we didn't see it all so it would be nice to go back. I had a friend who was smitten by Gerry and The Pacemakers so we went to see them one night, way down on the bill there was an unknown group called the Rolling Stones!0
