The company behind Liverpool's Cavern Club, Cavern City Tours Limited, has been sold to London-based firm 14 Collective, marking a new era for the historic Mathew Street venue where The Beatles played nearly 300 times between 1961 and 1963.
The sale includes the Cavern Club, Cavern Pub, Cavern Restaurant, and the Magical Mystery Tour. Liverpool-born Keith Blackhurst will join the board of Cavern City Tours alongside 14 Collective CEO Roderik Schlosser.
From jazz club to Merseybeat landmark
The Cavern Club was founded by Alan Sytner as a jazz venue, opening on January 16, 1957. It quickly attracted musicians such as Acker Bilk and Johnny Dankworth, and its underground platform nurtured rising regional acts, including Ringo Starr with Rory Storm's Hurricanes and The Quarry Men, featuring John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison.
The Beatles' last appearance at the club was on August 3, 1963, a month after recording "She Loves You" and six months before their first trip to America.
Closures, rebuild, and sale
The Cavern closed briefly in 1966 but reopened after a petition and support from local businessmen and prime minister Harold Wilson. It closed again in 1973 for a proposed railway ventilation shaft for the Merseyrail underground loop, and was demolished. In 1984, it was rebuilt in a deeper cellar using some 75% of the old site and 15,000 of its bricks. It was temporarily closed from 1989 to 1991 and has been open since.
A spokesperson for Cavern City Tours Limited said both Blackhurst and Schlosser have a long history in the music and live entertainment industry, adding: "14 Collective intends to build on the venue's long-standing tradition of live music and supporting upcoming artists."
