The 50th anniversary of the day the iconic London crosswalk was captured on film and featured on the 1969 Abbey Road album cover has been marked by thousands of Beatles fans visiting the site.
NME reported an estimate of 3,500 people travelled to the location this week. It’s situated near the intersection of Abbey and Grove End roads in St. John’s Wood, across the road from the studio where the band recorded the majority of their records.
The fans that gathered were an eclectic mix, some brought guitars and another fan dressed as Paul McCartney. Apparently, he proposed to his girlfriend while surrounded by other men dressed as Ringo, John and George.
A post put up on Social media shows some fans recreating the famous photo.
The former wife of George Harrison, Pattie Boyd, was not present but shared a photo taken by a friend of hers who did attend. Photographing yourself in the middle of Abbey Road is a rite of passage for Beatles fans when in London.
Some years ago, the local officials were worried about the amount of foot traffic at the crosswalk during the summer, they thought about putting a crossing guard on duty to ensure safety.
Last year McCartney posted a video of himself while visiting the recording studio, taking a moment to pose on the crosswalk, the image captured by his daughter Mary. He was there to perform in support of Egypt Station.
She made sure to photograph him in the same spot where the photo for the cover of his 1993 concert album, Paul Is Live was taken.
Other Beatles news includes the announcement of the Abbey Road box set will be out on Sept. 27, the day after the 50th anniversary of its original release.
The set has three CDs, a remix of the original LP, and two discs of demos and alternate take, including the Side Two medley in its original sequence. The set was remastered by Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell.
Check out the rest of the photos below:
Source: NME / UCR
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