If you didn’t yet know, The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields Forever” is inspired by a real place, and that place is opening its doors to the public for the first time. Liverpool’s Strawberry Field, a Salvation Army site frequented by a young John Lennon, is hosting an “interactive visitor exhibition, community café, shop, calm garden spaces for spiritual reflection,” according to their website.
According to BBC News, John Lennon’s sister, Julia Baird, has spoken on the venture saying, “I think he [Lennon] would have loved it, because he himself was not mainstream and was very aware of it." The site will feature an exhibition on Lennon’s early life and provide assistance to young people suffering from learning disabilities.
Anthony Cotterill, of the Salvation Army, has said, "John Lennon found sanctuary here as a child and that's exactly what we want to offer by opening the Strawberry Field gates for good."
In the past, the outside has been a sacred place for Beatles fans. There have been an estimated 60,000 tourists who visit the gate to the site each year.
Check the Strawberry Field website if you’d like to find hours, ticket prices or plan a trip to the site. The gates open today.
