John Winston Lennon was born on 9 October 1940 at Oxford Street Maternity Hospital. He lived with his parents, Alfred and Julia, until the age of five when Alfred deserted Julia and left her to cope alone. Julia eventually placed John in the care of her sister, Mimi Smith and her husband George, at 251 Menlove Avenue, Woolton. In 1946 John's father, Freddie, returned from America and tried to pursuade his young son to leave the country with him. The distressed six year old was placed in a compromising situation but eventually chose not to go with his father and his uncle George, a gentle man, acted as substitute father until his death in 1954.

John attended Dovedale Road infants school and took a keen interest in reading and writing, inspired by Alice in Wonderland and the Just William stories. As a teenager, John's interests turned to music and the arrival of the skiffle craze had an adverse effect on his education. Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly were his idols and were his only interests, much to the displeasure of his teachers. In 1956 the rebelious 16 year old formed his own skiffle group, the Quarrymen, inspired by the name of his Quarrybank school.

On 6 July 1957 John was introduced to Paul McCartney following a Quarrymen performance at a summer garden fete. John was immediately impressed by Paul's knowledge of the latest music lyrics together with his ability to tune a guitar. John asked Paul to join the band and a close friendship duly blossomed as the pair began writing music together.

Despite poor exam results as a result of his musical distractions and the loss of his mother, John's headmaster recommended him to the Liverpool College of Art where John studied between 1957 and 1960. John was disappointed with the college and found the fortunes of his band more appealing. He also found entertainment by continuing his writing of short stories and cartoon drawing. His doodlings would eventually be published during the days of Beatlemania. It was at College that John met Stuart Sutcliffe and Cynthia Powell. Stuart, a talented artist, joined the band and Cynthia became John's wife in 1962. John and Stuart formed a close relationship, however, following the band's second visit to Hamburg, Stuart decided to stay with girlfriend Astrid Kerchherr. In 1962 Stuart died of a cerebral haemorrhage. The band had come under attack from a group of youths a couple of years earlier and it is believed that Stuart's injuries eventually led to his death.

Charles John Julian Lennon was born on 8 April 1963, John's marriage to Cynthia was kept quiet in the early days of the Beatles career in case it had an adverse effect on the group's popularity. Julian would leave his own stamp on the Beatle's history when at the age of four his school painting was the inspiration behind 'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds'.

In March 1964 at the height of Beatlemania, John's first book 'In His Own Write' was published and later received a UK literary prize. A year later 'A Spaniard In The Works' was published and recevied equally encouraging reviews.

In 1966 an interview by The Evening Standard's Maureen Cleave sparked the 'We're more popular than Jesus' controversy. John always maintained that his comments were taken out of context. The repercussions were more evident in America than they were in Britain and in a press conference in Chicago, John apologised. Perhaps as a direct result of the incident, the Beatles performed their last concert later that month.

Having returned to Britain, John accepted Richard Lester's offer to appear in the film 'How I Won The War'. The film was shot in Germany and was not a huge success. In November 1966, John met Yoko Ono for the first time at the Indica Gallery in London and the pair bonded immediately. In 1968 with John and Yoko living together, Cynthia filed for divorce. The divorce was uncontested by John and Cynthia was granted custody of five year old Julian.

1968 also saw John appear in court on charges of marijuana posession. He was found guilty and fined £150, but more importantly had a drug conviction on his record which would later come back to haunt him. John and Yoko's first collaboration, the 'Two Virgins' album was released and in 1969 the couple married in Gibraltar. The honeymoon in Amsterdam's Hilton hotel comprised of a 'bed-in' where the press were invited to view the couple lying in bed. The events of the wedding and honeymoon were immortalised in the Beatle's 'The Ballad of John and Yoko'. John's Plastic Ono Band single 'Give Peace A Chance' was released several months later and he returned his MBE to the Queen, unhappy with Britain's support of America in Vietnam. The events of 1969 saw John awarded Man of The Year by Rolling Stone magazine. On New Years Ever, 1970, Paul McCartney filed a suit in the High Court formally dissolving the Beatles.

In 1975, having moved to America, Yoko gave birth to John's second son. Sean Ono Taro Lennon was born on John's birthday. His drug conviction of 1968 caused the US government to continually attempt to deport him. For the first five years of Sean's life, John devoted himself to his new family but by 1980 he returned to the recording studio.

On 8 December 1980, Mark David Chapman stepped out of the shadows of the Dakota building apartment block and shot John Lennon. The ex-Beatle was rushed in a police car to the Roosevelt Hospital where attempts to revive him failed.

On 9 December Britain awoke to the tragic news and shockwaves echoed throughout the world.

On the Sunday following the murder, thousands of grieving fans held a vigil on St George's Hall plateau.