IMAGINE

This Beatle Was Such a Bully That His School Pretended He Never Went There

A teacher at a school in Liverpool, England, has confirmed the long-suspected rumours.

Legendary musician John Lennon was apparently such a bully at school that his former academic institution refused to even acknowledge his attendance. According to Tom Barry, a teacher at Quarry Bank School in Liverpool, where Lennon studied from 1952-1957, the soon-to-be Beatle was effectively scrubbed from the school’s history. “When John left, he was that much of a nuisance and a bully and that much of a poor student, the school staff didn’t want to acknowledge that he ever went to the school and removed any trace of him,” Barry told The Independent. “He was never spoken about; he was never acknowledged through Beatlemania.” The school routinely turned away Beatles fans throughout the height of the band’s monumental popularity in order to break their association with Lennon. Lennon, who was born in Liverpool on October 9, 1940, became one of the most iconic musicians of all time as The Beatles’ frontman and with his later solo records. The “Imagine” singer was shot and killed by a disturbed fan outside his New York City apartment on December 8, 1980, further cementing his legacy. However, his reputation has since been reconsidered, owing to his own admissions of domestic violence, adultery, and neglect of his first son, Julian. “They didn’t want to idolize him and for students to think you can prat about and be a bit of a bully and still be successful,” Barry said.