Why Cynthia Lennon Burst Into Tears When George Harrison Visited Her in the Hospital
When George Harrison started playing music with John Lennon, he was 15 years old. Cynthia Lennon (Powell at the time), John’s then-girlfriend, was about 20. She thought of him as an annoying kid brother. When she got her appendix removed, he was the last person she wanted to see in her hospital room.
Out of all of John’s friends, Cynthia like George the least
According to the Beatles biography The Love You Make by Peter Brown and Steven Gaines, George was “the friend of John’s that Cynthia liked the least.” He had a way of annoying her. A big part of that was the amount of attention he gave to John.
“Slight and pale, he had his fair share of adolescent pimples,” reads TLYM. “More private than actually shy, it was obvious that George idolized John and did everything he could to emulate him.”
With his long hair, pointy shoes, pink shirt and yellow waistcoat, George made a habit of tagging along with John and Cynthia wherever they went.
“A little too young to be seriously dating, he had no idea that the young couple might have wanted to be alone, particularly on dates,” wrote Brown and Gaines. “But George was always lurking around in the background, trying to get John’s attention.”
He even joined the couple on movie dates, sitting on one side of John as Cynthia sat on the other. Every time John and Cynthia thought they’d managed a date night alone, sure enough, George would pop out of seemingly nowhere with his signature trademark announcing his arrival: a piercing whistle.
Cynthia Lennon’s appendix removal
One day, Cynthia had to have her appendix removed. She waited for hours in her hospital room for John to come visit her. He finally showed up with only 10 minutes more of visiting hours. And who showed up right behind him? None other than George Harrison.
“Cynthia was so upset at seeing him she burst into tears,” reads TLYM.
While it was clear Cynthia wasn’t a fan of George, George thought well of John’s girlfriend. “I think she’s great,” he told his bandmate. Though he did add, “But there’s one thing wrong. She’s got teeth like a horse.”
John Lennon’s Aunt Mimi didn’t like George Harrison either
George didn’t have a lot of fans in John’s circle. John lived with his Aunt Mimi, who didn’t like hardly any of John’s friends for fear that they were bad influences on him. George fell into that category.
“John tried to smooth the way for George by telling Mimi what a great guy he was before she ever met him, but once Mimi got a look at his pink shirt, she threw him out the door,” reads TLYM.
What was even more horrifying to Mimi was that George’s mother, Louise Harrison, was supportive of the boys’ band. It was at the Harrison home that the Quarrymen would practice. It was also where the boys often ate and hung out.
“It made Mimi furious,” wrote Brown and Gaines.
