Ringo calls for birthplace to be saved
The birthplace and childhood home of former Beatle Ringo Starr is in the balance following plans to bulldoze it.
The Victorian terrace at 9 Madryn Street, in Toxteth, Liverpool, where the drummer lived for four years, is one of a number of properties earmarked for demolition under a Government-backed regeneration scheme.
Starr has called for the homes to be refurbished rather than demolished.
But bosses at the Newheartlands pathfinder scheme stressed that no final decision had been made about the future of the properties, which are known as the Welsh streets.
A spokeswoman for the scheme said: “No decision has been taken about the Welsh streets as yet.
“We understand the cultural significance of Ringo’s birthplace and are proposing innovative ways of reflecting this in any future development.
“I’m sure that Ringo would welcome proposals to improve the quality of housing and potential investment of millions of pounds in the area where he grew up.”
At the Chelsea Flower Show yesterday, where he and his wife Barbara Bach were opening a garden, Starr said: “Why are they knocking them down? If it is economically viable, they should do them up.
“Are they going to knock out the centre of Liverpool again?
“That’s what they did before. They moved everybody to high-rise apartments outside the city and forgot to rebuild.
“I believe it’s now very nice. They even have bathrooms, which we never had.”
Starr lived briefly at Madryn Street before moving around the corner to Admiral Street, where he lived for 20 years.
Madryn Street is part of a development which was originally built to house migrant workers from north Wales.
