Liverpool, MSY Historic Sites & Interpretive Centres

Joseph Williamson was a successful tobacco merchant and property tycoon in early 1800s Liverpool. One of his many projects was the construction of a series of architecturally splendid but seemingly pointless tunnels under the streets of Liverpool. Many theories of why he chose to build his labyrinth have been put forward, but the most widely supported is that it was simply to provide employment for young Liverpudlian men in the post-Napoleonic war recession.

While the name of the Cavern is often associated with the Beatles, the lesser known Casbah Coffee Club argueably captures far more of the beat spirit. Opened by the mother of original drummer Pete Best, the Casbah Coffee Club was decorated by the Beatles themselves and many of the murals by Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Best still remain.