Welcome to Liverpool and I trust that the events we have planned for you will make your visit a memorable one. I always use this space as an opportunity to review the last twelve months and it would be impossible for me to do so without reference to the events of September 11th, which occurred only two weeks after the end of Beatleweek. A horrendous event with worldwide repercussions. Our first concern was all of our friends from NYC, including, of course, Will Schillinger and The Fab Faux. Fortuitously, everybody we knew were safe and well, though it took four or five days before we established telephone contact. Will actually witnessed the crash as he was on his way to his recording studios (Pilot Studios) which are only a few blocks north of the Twin Towers. Will Lee, of The Fab Faux, was invited to participate in the official tribute concert at Madison Square Gardens. He e-mailed me the day before to say he was performing, so I eagerly awaited his performance on TV. I wasn’t prepared for what I saw as Will played with Bowie, The Stones, Eric Clapton and, of course, to top it all he played bass for Macca! He put more on his CV in one night than most do in a lifetime. He later recounted the story of him telling Paul about The Fab Faux and their gigs in Liverpool, to which Paul replied that he bet that they didn’t do Tomorrow Never Knows. “Of course we do,” replied Will. A nice story to end a horrific set of events. But for us it didn’t end there. When we watched those surreal and tragic events unfold before our very eyes, little did we think it would impact upon us; but it did! In a very big way. You will recall last August 15th we were awarded a £2.3 million grant towards the development of the Hard Day’s Night Hotel. Well, we couldn’t meet with the developer and the banks in late August due to Beatleweek and the Mathew Street Festival, so it was decided that all the contracts and the legal documentation would be signed off officially on September 15th. When we went to the bank on that day we were informed that there was no point in taking the meeting as the bank were re-assessing their tourism projects and that head office would need a few months to monitor the situation  - vis-à-vis September 11th - and they would undoubtedly re-position themselves in the market. Despite the fact that everything had been verbally agreed with the banks for the previous two years, no formal contracts could be signed till the grant offer— so we were absolutely gutted but understood the situation. However, things went from bad to worse. The developer, who specialised in building hotels worldwide, saw his business interests collapse after September 11th and eventually, reluctantly pulled out of the scheme at Christmas. This was a mortal blow for us and it has caused us so much heartache, but we were finally resigned to the fact that it was unlikely we would ever realise our dream to develop the Hard Day’s Night Hotel. I am writing this in the first week of August in the hope that we may have had further information — but it is looking very bleak. So the tragic events of September 11th ultimately impacted upon Liverpool. However, if put into perspective, we have to gain comfort from the fact that ultimately our heartbreak was insignificant when compared with the real heartbreak that tens of thousands of people suffered as a result of losing loved ones in NYC, Philadelphia, Washington and, indeed, in the subsequent war in Afghanistan. In The Beatles Anthology, they remarked that the proudest aspect of being a Beatle was that their songs repeatedly reinforced messages of love and peace, but it appears that the real world will always ignore such basic, simple, yet ultimately profound concepts.
News (perhaps not as shocking but certainly as sad) reached us at the end of November, that George had lost his battle against cancer. Any of us who have lost a loved one from cancer (and I’m sure that most of us have) will have braced themselves for this news, which had seemed inevitable once his cancer had become secondary. A great deal of comfort can be derived from the fact that George’s religion gave him an inner strength and peace that the vast majority of us can only dream about. Death held no fears for George and indeed references to this effect abound in his writing. “Horse To Water” was a wonderful reminder of George’s talent and all that we can look forward to now is the release of a new album from his vast archives. In February, on his birthday, we organised together with Radio City and the Liverpool Echo, a tribute concert at the Empire for George. It sold out immediately, despite the fact that no artistes were announced. It was a wonderful, appropriate night, with musical pieces from an Indian quintet, appearances from the Hare Krishna Temple, a tribute by Haré Georgeson, appearances from his contemporaries (Merseybeats) and from friends who just wanted to say thank you (Steve Harley of Cockney Rebel). A marvelous, wonderful evening that raised nearly £40,000 for cancer research. But wait, who is that in the wings? (sorry about the pun!). Yes, it’s Sir Paul McCartney. Paul wanted to be there to pay his own tribute. He sang an accapella version of Yesterday, complete with amended lyrics - (“Why he had to go, he wouldn’t say!”). The place went nuts. Paul cried, we all cried. His appearance was not confirmed till the day, and throughout the week there was one ultimate condition - no publicity at all.  lf he did it, it was explained, it was because he wants to participate in his own personal tribute. I have never heard a roar like it when he came on to the stage. Afterwards I simply thanked him, to which he replied: “No, Bill, thank you!” Shaking his hand furiously I mumbled: “Yeah, Paul, but you don’t know how much this means to us and the people of Liverpool for you to be here.” Paul Looked me in the eye and replied: “Bill, you don’t know how much it means for me to be here; George would have loved it!” I was stunned, but he meant it. I have never seen him so comfortable with people around him. He had no security with him, he mingled at the side stage with all of the artistes and back stage technicians, signing autographs, posing for photos, watching the bands (he loved Haré Georgeson) and generally joining in the celebration for George. He even signed the Blue Meanie's guitars! There are some exclusive Cavern City Tours photos on pages 2, 3, 4 and page 35 of this programme. And for those of you who were not there, did Paul steal the show? No, not at all. It was George’s night and Paul ensured it stayed that way. This whole weekend has been dedicated to George and we are very proud that George’s sister, Louise, is joining us, not to mourn but to celebrate the Life of such an amazing man.
Paul, meanwhile, continues to return to Liverpool on a regular basis. He had a superb art exhibition at the Walker Art Gallery and some five paintings are still on display over this weekend. He also returned to Liverpool on July 25th (as did Yoko) to participate in the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations. The Queen dedicated the opening of the John Lennon International Airport. Yoko has been here three times over the last year or so, giving the city plenty of support. She bought Mendips and donated it to the National Trust and gave £30,000 to Dovedale Primary, John’s old primary school.
So it’s been a very eventful twelve months or so. We’ve got Paul’s British and European tours to look forward to which appear to be slated for early in the new year. We will, of course, be planning trips to as many as we can get tickets for, so stay in touch. It would be nice to replicate our previous trips to gigs in London, Paris and Hamburg, and of course, Liverpool. Keep in touch. Apart from our events, there are plenty of other great things to do while you are here, such as The Beatle Story, the opening of The Casbah, The Jacaranda, Walker Art Gallery, Ferry ‘Cross the Mersey, Beatles Auction at LIPA— although how you are going to fit them all in I just do not know! Don’t forget the Cavern Club and Pub — open all weekend — and you can get in free at all times on production of your key card. We’ve had some great gigs lately, including Bo Diddley, Fish, etc., and before Christmas we have got the original Crickets, the original Comets, and Joe Brown to mention but a few. Give all of the bands a cheer, especially our first-time visitors, including The Mersey Beatles, Liverpool Legends, Rocks Off, Beatlemaniacs, UK Beetles, American English, Zeatles, and the biggest cheer for Sam Butera, who travels from Argentina despite the horrendous economic situation there. On a personal note, a big hug and thanks to Nina, from The World Is Love, who has written the programme this year. (I don’t think she knew what it entailed; it’s a huge job!) Thanks, Nina, it enabled me to concentrate on other things and it saves the readers from the silly jokes about football, the World Cup and alcohol. Thanks also to Lisa Dick, who although not joining us this year, has given the programme a new, more modern look with her design suggestions.
And finally, on a sad note, whilst we all remember George Harrison, we at CCT on a more personal note would Like to remember a great friend, Bob Wooler, Uncle Charlie Lennon, Nicky Moore (an ex. employee) and George Guinness’s dad, all of whom have left this world — and, if George Harrison is right (and let’s hope he is), have gone on to a much better place.

BILL HECKLE
5th August 2002