Paul McCartney Suggested George Harrison Stay at Speke Hall in Liverpool During His Last Months
Paul McCartney advised George Harrison to stay at Speke Hall in Liverpool during his last months. The Beatle wanted to help his former bandmate find a peaceful place to stay. In the end, George died in an LA home once leased by Paul.
Paul McCartney talked to George following fabricated reports during his last months
In May 2001, George Harrison underwent surgery for lung cancer. He released a statement saying it was successful, and he was well into an excellent recovery. Two months later, doctors treated him for a brain tumor at a clinic in Switzerland. Still, George and his wife, Olivia, were hopeful of the ex-Beatle’s full recovery.
However, the newspapers spun stories. The Mail on Sunday fabricated an interview from The Beatles’ former manager, George Martin, that claimed George was dying. He was “disappointed and disgusted” by the reports.
In a 2001 interview, Rolling Stone brought the issue up with Paul. The “Yesterday” singer said he had to call George to hear the truth.
Paul said, “I spoke to George immediately after that. He said, ‘I suppose you’re ringing about [the newspaper reports].’ I said, ‘Not really, but I’m concerned.’ He said, ‘I just got an e-mail from George Martin, who said, ‘I promise you, George, I really didn’t say that. I wouldn’t ever.'”
Paul continued, “I don’t really like to talk about [George’s health] because I don’t know enough about it. I don’t really like to pry. Obviously he’s had problems, and I’m not sure of the current stage of things. But every time I ring him, he’s very upbeat. So I just cross my fingers and pray that things will be all right.”
Unfortunately, the Mail on Sunday’s false reports became a reality shortly after. George was dying.
Paul suggested George stay at Speke Hall during his last months
It seems Paul was more concerned about George than he initially let on.
During an interview with The Telegraph, Paul said George traveled around the world in his last months seeking treatment. He suggested George retire someplace nice.
“He’d gone to Geneva to see what they could do,” Paul said. “Then he came to a special clinic in New York to see what they could do. Then the thought was to go to L.A. and see what they could do.”
Paul said he suggested George go to Speke Hall, a famous Tudor mansion in Liverpool. He said, “He was sort of getting a bit, ‘Can’t we just stay in one place?’ And I said: ‘Yes, Speke Hall. Let’s go to Speke Hall.'”
Tom Petty said the press hounded George during the last year of his life
George wanted to rest someplace nice, but he also wanted privacy. Unfortunately, he didn’t get it.
During an interview with Rolling Stone in 2002, George’s friend and fellow Traveling Wilbury, Tom Petty, looked back at George’s last year. He said the press hounded George.
“I’ll tell you, the media wasn’t very sweet in the last year of his life,” Petty said. “He was probably the most hounded of his whole life when he was trying to deal with that. Especially in Europe, he never got a moment’s peace. He would have helicopters follow him when he left the house. I guess that comes with the territory. That’s part of the price you pay. He paid that price so many times — well, overpaid.”
No matter how much the press hounded him, Petty said George still had a positive outlook. “But he’d be the first to say there’s nothing to be gained by bitterness or anger, hatred. I don’t know how many times he would remind me that bitterness or pessimism is only going to slow you down finding the solution.
“And he lived that way. George was the kind of guy who wasn’t going to leave until he hugged you for five minutes and told you how much he loved you. We knew where we stood with each other.”
In the end, George retired to a Hollywood Hills mansion once leased by Paul. Although, the home wasn’t initially listed as George’s place of death. According to Idobi, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office said that George’s friends corrected his death certificate to say he died in Paul’s mansion after the first version listed a fake address.
Olivia likely listed the fake address to keep George’s privacy even in death. Again, it didn’t work.
