Ringo Starr Didn’t Think His Marriage Would Affect the Beatles
Even if all four members of the Beatles weren’t married by 1965, Ringo Starr didn’t think his first marriage would impact the rock band — or “bother” the other musicians. Here’s what we know about the drummer’s first wife.
What was Ringo Starr’s first wife’s name, and when were they married?
Aside from being in the Fab Four with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, the Beatles’ Ringo Starr began a relationship with hairdresser Mo Starkey. They met at one of the band’s early gigs, where she asked for an autograph.
After finding out that she was pregnant in late January 1965, 18-year-old Mo Starkey (then Maureen Tigrett) married Starr in London on Feb. 11, 1965.
Ringo wasn’t the first Beatles member to get married. John Lennon married his college sweetheart Cynthia Lennon in 1962. By 1965, though, Harrison and McCartney still were not married.
The Beatles’ Ringo Starr said his marriage with Mo Starkey wouldn’t ‘bother’ the other band members
There were some moments when Ringo commented on his relationship. During a 1965 interview (via Beatles Interviews), the drummer elaborated on married life and his Sussex honeymoon.
When asked about the other band members settling down, Ringo said, “I don’t think [because] I’m married, next week they’ll all pop up and say, ‘We’re gettin’ married [because] Ringo is,’ you know.”
The artist was asked if this marriage would impact the band’s future. Ringo said no — he would continue performing with the Beatles.
“On the Beatles as a whole, I don’t think any great effect — as much as that everyone will sort of say, ‘Well, we can’t sorta like them anymore ‘cuz Ringo’s married,’ you know,” he added. “I don’t think I’ve got that image. I don’t think it’ll bother them too much. It may help, in fact, you know. We don’t know yet. It’s too early to say.”
The couple had their first child together, a baby boy named Jason, in 1967.
Ringo Starr and Maureen Starkey divorced in 1975
Although Ringo Starr’s marriage to Maureen Starkey lasted several years, the two eventually filed for divorce. People close to the couple commented on the split, including Cynthia Lennon in her memoir John.
“When Mo and Ringo parted in 1974, she had been so heartbroken that she got on a motorbike and drove it straight into a brick wall, badly injuring herself,” Lennon wrote. “She had been in love with him since she was fifteen and his public appearances with his new girlfriend, American actress Nancy Andrews, had devastated her.”
In 1980, Ringo met his second wife, actor and model Barbara Bach. The two were married in 1981 and have been together for over 40 years.
