John Lennon Once Wrote a ‘Crazy’ Newspaper Article About the Origin of the Beatles

Before the Beatles were international superstars, John Lennon wrote “crazy” articles for a local newspaper. That included his interpretation of the origin of the band. Here’s what Cynthia Lennon said about her ex-husband’s side gig.

John Lennon co-wrote music for the Beatles

As one of the Beatles’ songwriters, Lennon was one of the masterminds behind “Hey Jude,” “Twist and Shout,” “Get Back,” and other hits. He’s also a published author who began writing blurbs for a local newspaper.

John Lennon wrote a newspaper article about the Beatles

Much of John Lennon’s early days with the Beatles were accompanied by Cynthia Lennon, his then-girlfriend. She recalled some of their biggest “breaks,” including a six-week stint in Germany and local gigs that grew popular. 

“It was around this time that a local newspaper called Mersey Beat was launched, devoted to the local beat scene, with big articles about the two lead groups, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes and Gerry and the Pacemakers,” Cynthia Lennon wrote in her 2005 memoir John.

“John was asked to write about the origins of the Beatles,” she continued, “which he did in true John style, in a crazy article that made little sense but had us all laughing.”

This was her ex-husband’s first published piece. After that, he regularly wrote for the newspaper, updating readers on the band’s process. Cynthia Lennon also included a blurb from the first article. 

“It began, ‘Once upon a time there were three little boys called John, George, and Paul, by name christened. They decided to get together because they were the getting-together type. When they were together they wondered what for after all, what for? So all of a sudden they all grew guitars and formed a noise,'” Lennon recalled.

Before he even wrote for the newspaper, Lennon wrote notes for his girlfriend while abroad. That included doodles and some “lewd letters” that she couldn’t display publicly. 

John Lennon wrote notes for Yoko Ono (as noted in ‘Skywriting By Word of Mouth’)

In addition to being a Beatles songwriter, Lennon is a published author. He created Skywriting By Word Of Mouth, another nonsense story strung together by truths and bits of glue. Yoko Ono wrote the foreword for this collection, commenting on her husband’s passion for writing. 

“John wrote very quickly,” Ono noted. “Words flowed from his pen like sparkling spring water; he never had to stop to think. In the next decade or so, I became immensely spoiled.” 

“He would write me little notes and long letters,” she continued, “I would find them in a book I was reading or on the kitchen table or next to my toothbrush — something to make me laugh, something to make me feel good, or bad, depending on his mood at that time.”