3 days ago
John Lennon's Scots holiday home won't have a plaque to say so after plans dropped
His worldwide fame as one of The Beatles means every town and city craves a connection to his legacy.
However, plans to mark the Edinburgh home where John Lennon spent his childhood holidays have collapsed following a bitter fall out among officials.
As a schoolboy Lennon regularly spent part of the summer holidays with his aunt and uncle at the two-storey property in the capital's upmarket Murrayfield area.
He penned the Fab Four's song Rain while staying at the house and also returned to visit at the height of Beatlemania.
To mark the connection, a commemorative sign was proposed by Pete Gregson of the Murrayfield Community Council (MCC), which initially backed the project in 2023.
Just weeks later Mr Gregson was asked to resign by fellow councillors after they took exception to comments they claimed he wrote online about the 'situation in Gaza'.
Minutes from subsequent meetings show the issue was resolved, with Mr Gregson continuing to be on the community council until choosing to leave this year.
However, in the wake of his departure, the plaque proposal has now been officially dropped.
MCC secretary Hamish Ross said: 'A new Community Council was formed following the 2025 election cycle.
'Local plaques are not on the agenda at the moment and the leading light behind this particular one stood down at the elections.'
Lennon's aunt Elizabeth – known to her family as 'Mater' – was the sister of his mother Julia, and lived at 15 Ormidale Terrace with her son Stan Parkes and her second husband Robert Sutherland.
The proposed wording on the plaque read: 'John Lennon visited Ormidale Terrace regularly until the age of 17 in 1957 to visit his aunt and cousin; he often performed for the family on his aunt's piano.
'The cupboard under the stairs was where he penned The Beatles ' song Rain, the 1966 B-side to Paperback Writer.
His long summers here ranked among his happiest childhood memories, describing Edinburgh as one of his favourite cities, enjoying the Festival, the Tattoo and the rugby at Murrayfield.
'He even brought Yoko Ono here in 1969.'
Marlene Wood, 62, the current owner of the £1 million townhouse, said some people liked the idea of the plaque 'but others definitely opposed it'.
She said: 'We already get people ringing the doorbell to ask for a look around.
'I think some neighbours were worried the street would become a tourist attraction. The taxi drivers know the house, so I see them slowing down and people staring out.'
In a letter written in 1978 to his cousin Stan, two years before Lennon was murdered outside his New York apartment, he expressed his regret at the house being sold by the family.
He wrote: 'I would have bought 15 Ormidale. Wish, wish, wish.'
