Admiral Grove 10 for sale

The “V for victory” sign was recently replaced with a new one.

Following the death of former resident Margaret Grose, the house where Ringo Starr grew up and lived until The Beatles took off is up for sale. Number 10 Admiral Grove in Toxteth, where the former Beatle lived until he was 21, is up for auction after the housing association gave the okay for the sale to go-ahead.

Ringo the accordionist in the doorway at Admiral Grove 10, with mother Elsie.

The two-bed Victorian terrace property was a regular haunt for the Fab Four in their younger days and other well-known faces on the Merseybeat scene, including the late Cilla Black. The Empress pub at the end of Admiral Grove was also famous for appearing on the front of Ringo’s first solo album, Sentimental Journey. In the film “The Mersey Sound” from 1963, Ringo can be seen leaving the house in Admiral Grove to be picked up by George Harrison, arriving in his car. The scene was also used in the promotional music video for the BBC recording of “Words of Love” in 2013.

Outside Admiral Grove 10: Ringo with his mother Elsie and stepfather Harry.

The property still attracts fans daily as it is part of the official Beatles Tour and Margaret Grose, the tenant who had lived at the property for 37 years, was always happy to invite people in to have a look inside the house until her death last year.

Following her passing away, Plus Dane made the decision to sell the house at auction on 24th March 2016.

Claire Griffiths, Plus Dane’s Executive Director of Property, said:

“Plus Dane has considered all of the options in relation to this property following the sad death of Margaret, who was a well-respected figure in the community. We felt it would be most beneficial to the community for the property to be sold as any profits made will be reinvested back into Plus Dane homes in the L8 area.”

Taking on board the concerns local residents may have, a number of restrictions have been placed on the sale of the house so it cannot become a tourist attraction or museum.

The house is just up the road from Ringo’s first childhood home in 9 Madryn Street, which was recently saved from demolition. Ringo moved from Madryn Street to Admiral Grove at age 5.

Like other recently sold former Beatles member’s houses, an auction will be held at the Cavern Club. The auction will take place on Thursday 24th March and the house has a guide price of £55,000, but auctioneers Countrywide are hoping it might attract investors with an interest in the Fab Four.

Tony Webber, Auction Surveyor, Countrywide Property Auctions, said:

“We are delighted and excited that Plus Dane Housing has chosen Countrywide to auction this property, which is such a unique part of Liverpool’s history as well as that of The Beatles.  We have auctioned properties lived in by three other members of The Beatles – John Lennon, George Harrison and Paul McCartney, and we expect a high level of interest from potential buyers in the UK and internationally.  We would urge all interested parties to register their details as soon as possible to ensure they don’t miss out on this rare opportunity.”

In 2014 and 2015, Beatles fan Jackie Holmes purchased both George Harrison’s former home at Upton Green in Speke as well as the former home of Julia Stanley Lennon, John’s mother, in Bloomfield Road in Allerton’s Springwood estate. She plans to live in the house in Bloomfield Road, where Julia taught young John to play the banjo and rent out George Harrison’s former home at Upton Green in Speke as a Beatles-themed let. The house in Bloomfield Road was sold for £155,000 in late March 2015, while Upton Green went for £156,000 in October 2014.

In October 2013, John Lennon’s childhood home at 9 Newcastle Road in Wavertree (just off Penny Lane), sold at auction for £480,000 to an undisclosed telephone bidder. Paul McCartney’s childhood home in 72 Western Avenue was sold at a Cavern Club auction in February 2015 for £150,000 to a mystery buyer.