100 Letters to Ringo
As seen in The BBC, LBC, The Mirror, Liverpool Echo
I’m currently working on a very special project involving a remarkable collection of partial fan letters sent to Ringo Starr between September 1965 and January 1966. These envelopes once contained letters and were kept by Roger Hopkins, who worked for Ringo at the time, doing odd jobs and looking after his house, Sunny Heights, in Weybridge. Roger lived in a caravan on the property, and his girlfriend at the time, Iris, would occasionally socialise with Ringo and his wife, Maureen. Ringo kept the letters, and gave the envelopes to Roger.
Iris told me Roger originally held onto the envelopes because his father collected stamps. Thankfully, the envelopes were preserved, capturing a moment in Beatles history as fans around the world reached out to their favourite drummer.
Roger shared some wonderful memories with me. He recalled Ringo’s dry humour, like the time he asked Roger to fill up his Mini. Roger explained he didn’t have any money and asked, “What shall I fill it up with?” After a pause, Ringo answered, “Milk,” before bursting into laughter and handing him a tenner. He also remembered John Lennon often arriving on his moped. One winter’s day, John skidded and fell while trying to leave Ringo’s drive. A group of fans gathered outside the house rushed to help him. John was fine and happily signed autographs for them before heading off. For those fans, it was likely a moment they never forgot.
There are currently 84 envelopes in the collection, and more than half of them include return addresses. I’ve written to those addresses in the hope that someone connected to the original sender still lives there or can help trace them, so I can ‘re-fill’ the envelopes. I would also be very interested in speaking to former Royal Mail workers who remember how fan mail was handled during the height of Beatlemania.
Some fans addressed their letters to all four Beatles at Ringo’s house. One simply wrote “Ringo Starr, Liverpool, England” on the envelope – and it still arrived. The handwriting, stamps and paper all contribute to the story, capturing the spirit of an era.
This was a pivotal time in Beatles history. In late 1965, they released Rubber Soul, a record that marked a new chapter in their music, with more mature songwriting and experimentation. They had just completed their second film, Help!, and were continuing to tour, record and appear on television around the world. These letters reflect that global excitement and the deeply personal connection fans felt to the band.
Ringo’s relationship with fan mail has changed over the years. In 2008, he released a video message asking fans to stop sending him letters and items to sign, saying he no longer had time to respond. That message ended, as always, with “peace and love”. And of course, his fan mail was even the subject of a 1991 episode of The Simpsons, where a fictional Ringo lovingly replies to a letter decades after it was sent. In reality, his stance is rather different, but the episode is all the more entertaining because of it.
The envelopes in my collection come from 14 countries, including Australia, Brazil, Italy, Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom. Some are addressed to his Weybridge home, Sunny Heights, and others to his flat at Montagu Square in London – a place that later became infamous when Jimi Hendrix rented it and was evicted by Ringo for being a troublesome tenant. John Lennon and Yoko Ono also lived there for a time, and it’s where they were arrested for drug possession. The photo for their Two Virgins album cover was taken there as well.
If you recognise any of the names or addresses in the collection below, or if you were one of the fans who wrote to Ringo during this time, I would love to hear from you.
