Abbey Road at 50: Beatles fans gather to celebrate anniversary of iconic album cover
Dozens of people took their turn on the famous zebra crossing
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.It’s been 50 years since The Beatles were photographed on the Abbey Road zebra crossing, and today hundreds of enthusiasts gathered there to celebrate the landmark anniversary.
The classic album cover shows John Lennon in a white suit leading the band across the road outside EMI Recording Studios with Ringo Starr wearing a black suit and Paul McCartney walking barefoot, out of step and holding a cigarette.
George Harrison can be seen dressed in blue denim while a Volkswagen Beetle is parked in the background.
Today, the Beetle was back in position while traffic crawled along the crowded street. Meanwhile, dozens of fans paraded on the black-and-white painted crossing for souvenir photos.
Just six shots of the group were taken by Scottish photographer Iain Macmillan in 1969, and the fifth was used as the cover for the band’s 11th studio album, released on 26 September 1969.
It was the last album to be recorded by all four members of the band together, and had tracks written by each member, including “Come Together” by Lennon, “Here Comes the Sun” by Harrison, “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” by McCartney and Starr’s “Octopus’s Garden”.
The studios were later renamed Abbey Road and – along with the zebra crossing – were granted protected status by the government in 2010.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments