He Was Brilliant, Messy, And Unforgettable
John Lennon wasn’t a saint, not by a long shot. He cheated, provoked, and lashed out—but he also wrote songs that shook the soul and reshaped modern music. From Beatlemania to bed-ins, he never stopped pushing boundaries. Yet, even as he rocketed to fame, he couldn’t outrun the chaos he carried inside.
Love him or hate him, Lennon never played it safe—and that’s exactly why the world couldn’t —and still can’t—look away.
1. He Had Daddy Issues
Lennon didn’t rebel just for the heck of it—he rebelled because the world had wounded him early and often. When he was born on October 9, 1940, in Liverpool during a brief pause in the ongoing German air raids, his father, Alfred, was nowhere to be found. A merchant sailor, Alfred spent most of his time at sea while Lennon’s mother, Julia, struggled to raise her son alone.
But that was just the beginning of a family scandal that would shake Lennon’s world to its core…
2. His Mom Was In For A Shock
When John Lennon was just four, his life veered straight into soap opera territory. His father vanished without a trace, going AWOL from the navy—and if that wasn’t dramatic enough, the money he’d been sending the family suddenly dried up too. Months dragged by with no word, and just as his mother began to rebuild her life, reality hit her with another twist.
3. His Family Life Was Shambolic
Imagine opening the door to your missing husband only for him to see that you are bursting at the seams, pregnant with a child that couldn’t possibly be his. Although Alfred had finally been ready to play the part of family man, his comeback plans went up in smoke. It was the kind of moment that could crack a family in two—and it did.
Ron Kroon for Anefo, Wikimedia Commons
4. His Aunt Came To The “Rescue”
Two men and a baby…and young John—what could go wrong? Well, Julia’s prim-and-proper sister, Mimi—childless, stern, and completely over Julia’s lifestyle—swooped in on a rescue mission. Before long, the troubled little boy was living under Mimi’s roof. It was a bizarre “solution,” and it only got weirder from there.
Vern Barchard, Wikimedia Commons
5. He Was Caught In The Middle
John Lennon was not lacking male role models. Mimi’s husband, the kind and steady George, encouraged Lennon’s musical spark by gifting him his first harmonica. But not all the men in Lennon’s life had such pure intentions. When Lennon was five, his father popped back up and offered to take the boy on a trip to Blackpool.
Julia, who may have been flaky but not stupid, had a bad feeling about it.
Library of Congress, Wikimedia Commons
6. He Witnessed A Showdown
On the day of the trip, Julia and her new man were on the case. The pair tailed John and Alfred, only to discover they weren’t heading to Blackpool at all. Alfred was planning to snatch the boy and haul him off to New Zealand! When Julia confronted the pair, she absolutely lost it as Lennon likely stood there, trembling.
Alfred backed off, and life returned to normal…for now.
7. His Mom Was His Bestie
It’s hard to imagine how bewildered Lennon must have felt. His mother didn’t raise him, but she did drop by Mimi’s for visits. When she came around, it wasn’t lullabies and bedtime stories. Instead, she spun Elvis records, cracked jokes, and taught Lennon how to play the banjo. She was a whirlwind of chaos, charm, and charisma—more pal than parent.
Later in life, Lennon would make a jaw-dropping confession about his feelings during this era.
8. He Had Some Deeply Confusing Feelings
To say that John’s relationship with his mother was complicated is like saying The Beatles were “kind of popular”. Try abandonment, lust, and a healthy dose of emotional turmoil. In a jaw-dropping 1979 interview, Lennon confessed that when he was 14, he felt physically attracted to Julia. Yeah, you read that right. Teenage hormones plus unresolved maternal issues equals one deeply uncomfortable revelation.
9. His Confession Was Haunting
In that same 1979 interview, Lennon took things to a whole new level of stomach-churning. He recalled lying in bed next to Julia and accidentally brushing her chest. Instead of recoiling in horror, he admitted, “I was wondering if I should do anything else… Presumably, she would have allowed it”.
Yikes. And just when you thought it couldn’t get messier, his story barrels straight into tragedy.
Tony Barnard, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
10. His World Was Crumbling
Teenage years are usually messy, but Lennon’s were downright brutal. At 14, he lost one of the only stable figures in his life: his uncle George, Mimi’s husband and his de facto dad. One minute, George was at home, and the next, he collapsed from a sudden liver hemorrhage at just 52 years old.
The loss shattered Lennon—but heartbreak wasn’t done with him yet. In fact, this was just the warm-up.
11. He Had A Secret
Like any rebellious teen with a secret passion, Lennon had to get a little sneaky—luckily, his accomplice was his own mother. At 15, she bought him his first guitar, but had it delivered to her house so Aunt Mimi wouldn’t flip out. Practical to a fault, she said, “The guitar’s all very well, John, but you’ll never make a living out of it”.
We’re all laughing now, but at the time, her jab added a whole new layer of splinters to the chip already weighing down his shoulder.
Max Scheler - K & K, Getty Images
12. He Was Building A Life
Every teen clashes with authority, but other than Aunt Mimi, John Lennon’s life didn’t have too many obstacles. In 1957, things were actually looking up. He was going to Liverpool College of Art, he had started a skiffle-meets-rock band called The Quarrymen, and even scored a girlfriend—fellow student Cynthia Powell.
But just as the pieces of his life were starting to fall into place, fate came along and kicked over the whole darn board—again.
Los Angeles Times, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
13. He Was Blindsided
In 1958, just three years after losing Uncle George, 17-year-old Lennon’s world was shattered again. His mother, Julia, was hit by a car after visiting Mimi’s house—and just like that, she was gone. Her violent and sudden demise ignited a seething rage that would simmer inside him for years. Lennon later told one interviewer that he “lost her twice. When I was five and moved in with my auntie, and then when she physically [passed]”.
Post-WWII England wasn’t exactly bursting at the seams with therapists, so Lennon had no choice but to channel that fury into something—and it changed everything.
14. He Dropped Out
Lennon threw his broken heart and soul into The Quarrymen. The band—now comprised of right-hand man Paul McCartney and McCartney’s quiet friend George Harrison, along with Stuart Sutcliffe on bass and drummer Pete Best—started to build a buzz. Only two years after Julia’s passing, they scored a 48-night residency in Hamburg, Germany.
A horrified Aunt Mimi begged Lennon to stay in art school. Thank goodness he didn’t listen.
15. He Went To Sin City
WWII may have been over, but the British were still invading Germany in the early 60s…well, kind of. British musicians were heading over to the seedy clubs of Hamburg in droves to play marathon sets for dangerous crowds. It may have been raw, loud, and filthy, but it was also the perfect boot camp for The Beatles. Of course, uppers were everywhere, and they helped, too.
McCartney later said that for every one pill he took, Lennon would take four or five. It was the beginning of a chemical journey that would take Lennon everywhere—from acid trips to the edge of a needle.
United Press International, Wikimedia Commons
16. His Rage Knew No Limits
Lennon had a temper, and when it flared, it could be terrifying. While dating Cynthia Powell, he completely lost it after seeing his bandmate Stuart Sutcliffe—with his James Dean looks—dancing with her. Lennon didn’t just fume. He lashed out and hit Powell so hard that her head slammed against the wall.
It was brutal. But what makes it even more disturbing? The root of his jealousy may have had a lot more to do with Sutcliffe…
Evening Standard, Getty Images
17. He Had A Dark Side
It’s hard to reconcile the image of Lennon, iconic peace preacher, with that of a young man who could spontaneously erupt into brutality. But the contradictions didn’t stop there. Around this time, Lennon’s close friendship with bandmate Sutcliffe began raising eyebrows. In public, Lennon tormented Sutcliffe often—mocking him, embarrassing him, and pushing his buttons.
But behind closed doors? That’s where things got strange.
Ellen Piel - K & K, Getty Images
18. His Friendship Was…Complicated
Though Lennon publicly tormented Sutcliffe, their private dynamic was something else entirely. When Stuart was bedridden, he would write Lennon emotional, 30-page letters. Some people, including Sutcliffe’s sister, believed they were more than friends. She once said, “I have known in my heart for years that Stuart and John had [an intimate] relationship”. Even the Beatles' publicist admitted it was “intense and experimental”.
Maybe Lennon’s rage wasn’t about love triangles—perhaps it was triggered by the thought of losing the one person who understood him. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
19. He Had Many Entanglements
Speaking of love triangles…there might have been two more. One between Lennon, Sutcliffe, and his girlfriend, Astrid Kirchherr, and another between Lennon, Sutcliffe, and Paul McCartney.
Think of it as a Hamburg-based Liverpudlian Vanderpump Rules where Sutcliffe was definitely the number one guy in the group. McCartney was feeling iced out, Kirchherr was pulling Sutcliffe toward art school, and Lennon? Well, he was losing control. What happened next might sound like tinfoil-hat territory, so hold tight…
20. He Was A Jealous Guy
One night in May 1961, on the streets of Hamburg, Lennon lost control in the most horrifying way possible. According to Sutcliffe’s sister, Pauline, the two friends got into a heated argument about Sutcliffe’s plan to leave The Beatles and return to art school. Lennon snapped, punching Sutcliffe and booting him in the head like a man possessed.
Suddenly, as the red mist cleared, Lennon looked down at what he’d done, turned on his heel…and ran.
21. He Took The Truth To The Grave
Now here’s the twist—on April 10, 1962, about a year after Lennon’s violent outburst, Stuart Sutcliffe collapsed and passed from a sudden brain hemorrhage. According to his sister Pauline, it wasn’t a mystery. She believed that Lennon’s brutal kicks to the head were the cause.
Even more haunting? Much later, a remorseful Lennon allegedly told Yoko Ono that he had been wearing pointed cowboy boots that night.
Sean Dempsey - PA Images, Getty Images
22. His Life Changed Overnight
Stuart Sutcliffe had been gone for barely two months when Lennon’s girlfriend, Cynthia Powell, delivered some shocking news. She was pregnant—and the timing couldn’t be worse. It was July 1962, and Beatlemania was just starting to heat up. Still, Lennon insisted they marry in a secret city hall ceremony, with manager Brian Epstein as best man. Epstein made one thing clear: The fans could never find out.
Now about that honeymoon…
23. He Made A Choice
Like father, like son? Well, Lennon made a pretty bizarre parenting choice after his son Julian was born on April 8, 1963—he skipped the birth entirely. Sure, it might’ve been expected, considering his own father had been absent, but Alfred Lennon hadn’t jetted off to Spain with his gay manager while his wife tended to a newborn.
People were shocked—but when one person dared to call him out, Lennon didn’t just clap back. He exploded.
24. He Partied Way Too Hard
Armageddon struck during Paul McCartney’s 21st birthday bash in Liverpool. The Beatles were on the rise, and the party was packed with stars, suits, and scenesters. But one guest was a walking Molotov cocktail: John Lennon, who later admitted he was “out of me mind with drink”.
When Bob Wooller, a popular DJ, made the mistake of joking about Lennon’s Spanish honeymoon, Lennon snapped—but we'll get to the horrifying details of that a little later on.
Max Scheler - K & K, Getty Images
25. His Cries Went Unanswered
Lennon’s life was pure chaos: a secret wife and son, frenzied fans, and a global takeover that peaked with the Beatles’ explosive debut on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. They weren’t just famous—they were untouchable gods. But behind Lennon’s smirk was something darker.
When he wrote “Help!” in 1965, he wasn’t being cute. “It was me singing ‘help,’” he admitted. And when no one heard him? He turned to acid.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
26. He Was Feeling Low At The Top
By 1965, Lennon was technically living the dream—but it felt more like a nightmare. He’d packed on some pounds, felt creatively stuck, and was fed up with Beatles concerts that sounded more like screaming contests than music. Then came the night it all changed… at a dinner party, hosted by George Harrison’s dentist, who secretly spiked the coffee with acid.
Lennon and Harrison had no idea what was coming—but that trip cracked their world wide open and sent the Beatles’ music hurtling in a wild new direction.
Keystone Features, Getty Images
27. He Left Paul McCartney Behind
Lennon and Harrison’s first acid trip changed everything. So much so, they could barely relate to McCartney and Starr afterward. The solution? Get the other Beatles to drop acid too. Starr was game, but McCartney wasn’t having it. He was terrified of losing control and never thinking the same way again. As Lennon put it, “Paul felt very out of it because we are all slightly cruel, sort of, ‘We’re taking it and you’re not’”.
That was the moment a tiny crack formed in the Fab Four—and it would only grow.
Eric Koch for Anefo, Wikimedia Commons
28. He Started The Psychedelic Revolution
Once Lennon dropped acid, everything changed—especially the music. Harrison brought in the sitar, and Lennon’s lyrics shifted from bubble gum to Buddhism. One book told him, “Trust your divinity, trust your brain, and trust your companions. Whenever in doubt, turn off your mind, relax, float downstream”. Sound familiar? It inspired the iconic “Tomorrow Never Knows”.
But as trippy as acid was, it was nothing compared to the muse who was about to blow Lennon’s mind for good.
Keystone Features, Hulton Archive, Getty Images
29. He Left It All Behind
By 1967, Lennon had shed his old skin, and the new John wasn’t on the same wavelength as his wife, Cynthia. One 1967 incident made this heartbreakingly clear. As The Beatles boarded a train to a meditation retreat, a law officer stopped Powell cold. Lennon didn’t notice. The train pulled away, leaving her standing on the platform alone.
But the true confirmation that the marriage was over? That came later—and it was far more devastating.
Cummings Archives, Getty Images
30. He Broke Her Heart
In May 1968, Cynthia returned home from a vacation in Greece—one her husband had practically shoved her into—only to walk into a nightmare. There, in her home, sat Lennon and a strange woman…wearing nothing but bathrobes. His reaction? A casual, “Oh, hi”.
Cynthia later wrote, “The cruelty of John’s betrayal was hard to absorb”. After Cynthia cooled off, Lennon assured her that this woman, Yoko Ono, meant nothing. Tragically, she believed him.
31. His Wife Was Not Out Of The Woods
Cynthia was able to relax—but only for a hot minute. When she asked to join Lennon on his trip to the US, he gave her a hard no. Trying to escape the looming cracks in her marriage and the pit in her stomach, she took young Julian and her mother to Italy instead.
The real shock came after her night of letting off steam. At 2:00 am, Cynthia returned to her hotel to find one of Lennon’s hangers-on waiting for her. His words chilled her: “I’ve come with a message from John”.
Evening Standard, Getty Images
32. He Made Headlines
As Cynthia piled out of the cab in front of the hotel, John Lennon’s assistant delivered a brutal message from the star: “He is going to divorce you, take Julian away from you, and send you back to Hoylake”. Ouch. The final jab came when Cynthia opened the newspaper and saw Lennon hand in hand with his “new love,” Yoko Ono.
Paul McCartney later stopped by with a red rose and whispered, “I’m so sorry, Cyn, I don’t know what’s come over him”. The whole world would soon be wondering the same thing.
Bernard Gotfryd, Wikimedia Commons
33. He Broke The Code
Lennon was never a fan of rules—but during the recording of the White Album (AKA The Beatles) in 1968, he shattered one of the biggest. The band had a strict no-wives-or-girlfriends policy at the studio. So, when Lennon strolled in with Ono by his side, jaws hit the floor. And she didn’t sit quietly in the corner—she gave opinions, made suggestions, and became an unshakeable fixture. Lennon later admitted that “the break-up of the Beatles can be heard on that album”.
One Beatle in particular was especially upset by this new dynamic…
34. He Started A New Chapter
Just as Lennon’s wild life was hitting a rare high—Yoko Ono was pregnant—the crash came fast. One lazy afternoon in their London apartment turned into a nightmare when the authorities came pounding at the door. The couple had been tipped off by friends weeks earlier, but it didn’t matter. The sniffer dogs still found some traces of cannabis.
The whole thing became a media circus, with Lennon and Ono paraded in front of the press. The stress was unbearable—especially for Ono.
Joost Evers / Anefo, Wikimedia Commons
35. He Faced Another Loss
Just days after the bust in October 1968, tragedy struck again. Yoko Ono suffered a miscarriage that was likely brought on by stress. The baby, a boy they had planned to name John Ono Lennon II, was gone. Lennon later admitted that the “real pain” of the loss sent them spiraling into heavy substances.
His new woman, new vice, and growing distance from the others were quickly becoming a recipe for disaster. The cracks in The Beatles were starting to deepen—and this time, they might not heal.
Eric Koch / Anefo, Wikimedia Commons
36. He Had A New Bestie
In January 1969, The Beatles were flying high—the White Album had just dropped, and they were working on Let It Be. Too bad a quiet storm was brewing between two of the unlikeliest bandmates: John Lennon and George Harrison. The former BFFs had once bonded over hits of acid and sitars, but lately? Harrison was upset that Yoko Ono had taken his place at Lennon’s side. Lennon was growing jealous of how Harrison’s songwriting kept getting better as Lennon floundered in a haze of substances.
37. He Erupted Again
The worst part of this spat? It played out on camera—Real Housewives style. During the Let It Be sessions (immortalized in Peter Jackson’s Get Back), the vibe between Harrison and Lennon turned downright nasty. Some even claim that it got physical, just out of frame. Harrison, who later admitted it was a “very stressful” time, had had enough. He thought, “I’m not doing this anymore,” and walked out.
Lennon talked tough, wanting to quickly replace Harrison with Eric Clapton—but after 10 tense days, the band asked Harrison back. The respite was only temporary.
Keystone Features, Getty Images
38. He Made It Official
By March 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono weren’t just feeding off each other’s creativity—they were devouring it. Knowing their wedding would cause a media frenzy, they turned the circus into a statement. For their honeymoon, they staged a “bed-in” for peace, holding court from 9 am to 9 pm each day for a week at the Amsterdam Hilton. The world had never seen anything like it.
39. He Grabbed Headlines
Lennon called it “a commercial for peace on the front page of the papers”. And the headlines were massive, but not everyone was cheering. Lennon and Ono’s whirlwind of avant-garde projects—films, protests, performance art—was pulling Lennon further from The Beatles. The band that once got all of Lennon’s energy was now left scavenging for scraps. The peace was public, but the tension behind the scenes? Ready to blow.
40. He Hit The Road
The beleaguered Abbey Road sessions started in April 1969, but when tensions started to bubble, Lennon hit the road—literally. Hoping for a break, he packed Yoko Ono, her daughter, and Julian into the car for a road trip to the Scottish Highlands. One problem: Lennon was an awful driver with terrible eyesight. Disaster struck. On July 1, 1969, he crashed the car, leaving Ono with a back injury and sending the rest of them off for stitches.
Julian escaped unharmed, but the same couldn’t be said for The Beatles’ momentum.
41. He Was Out Of Control
Lennon had his reasons for getting into the really hard stuff—but one of the most jaw-dropping? He claimed it was a way to rebel against the other Beatles for not accepting Yoko Ono as his equal. The others were already tiptoeing around Lennon’s volcanic moods, but after his car crash, things got worse. Much worse.
To top it all off, Lennon had a king-sized bed delivered to the studio so Ono could literally lie there and supervise sessions. The tension was off the charts. It’s no wonder Abbey Road was the last album the Fab Four ever recorded together. The band broke up in April 1970.
The Beatles - Abbey Road CD Unboxing by Unbox Kings International
42. He Let Go Of Yoko
By 1973, John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s once inseparable bond was cracking. The backlash after The Beatles’ breakup had turned vicious—fans blamed Ono for everything, and even wanted to hurt her. The tension was unbearable…so Ono came up with a truly bizarre fix: she told Lennon to take up with their assistant, May Pang.
It sounded like a joke (even by swingin’ 70s standards). After some convincing, though, Pang agreed, and soon she and Lennon were on a plane to LA. What followed would be the wildest, weirdest chapter of his life.
43. He Went Off The Rails
Lennon’s “Lost Weekend” in LA was an 18-month cocktail of chaos. On the plus side, Pang was a positive force who encouraged him to not only reconnect with his son Julian but also with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Unfortunately, things got messy fast as Lennon and his wild crew (Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon) dove headfirst into a sea of booze and substances.
44. He Was Put In His Place
At one infamous outing, Pang, Lennon, and his entourage showed up at the Troubadour ready for fun. Oh, and did we mention that Lennon had a sanitary pad tied to his forehead? When the waitress, who had been busting her butt all night, asked him for a tip, Lennon snapped, “Don’t you know who I am?” She replied, “You’re some [idiot] with a Kotex around his head”.
Oh, and Yoko Ono? She was suffering from a bad case of FOMO and was calling Pang “a million times a day”. Trouble was brewing.
45. He Just Had To Let It Go
All good things must come to an end, and this was true for Lennon and Pang’s freewheeling time in the California sun. The couple tried nesting in a cozy NYC apartment for a while, but Ono’s grip was still iron-clad. Before long, she lured Lennon back—and almost instantly, she was pregnant. On October 9, 1975 (Lennon’s own birthday), Sean Lennon was born. And just like that, Lennon hit pause on fame.
46. He Stepped Out Of The Spotlight
John Lennon did the unthinkable—he turned his back on superstardom to become a full-time dad. For five years, he baked bread and changed diapers and tried to figure out who he was without The Beatles. But even in his quiet life, the past haunted him. When George Harrison visited, he said Lennon had “wanted to say so much more…you could see it in his eyes”. It was like Lennon was silently crying out to reconnect, “but he wasn’t able to because of the situation he was in”.
Whatever Lennon was holding back, he’d never get the chance to say it.
47. He Was Ready To Start Over
After years out of the spotlight, Lennon was finally ready to return to music—and life. In November 1980, he released Double Fantasy, a new album with Yoko Ono that felt like a fresh start. For the first time in ages, he seemed clear-headed, inspired, and even…happy. He told one reporter, “We feel like this is our first album. I feel like…nothing happened before today”.
Tragically, the dream wouldn’t last.
Jack Mitchell, Wikimedia Commons
48. He Didn’t See It Coming
Although John Lennon had lived several lives worth of drama, he was feeling good about his next chapter. On the evening of December 8, 1980, after a long recording session, he and Yoko Ono were heading back to their New York home, The Dakota. Ono asked if he wanted to grab dinner, but he told her he’d rather just get home to Sean before he goes to sleep.
As they approached the entrance, a familiar face stepped out of the shadows. It was Mark David Chapman, a fan Lennon had met earlier that day.
New York City Police Department, Wikimedia Commons
49. He Never Made It Home
It all happened in an instant. Just hours after Lennon had kindly autographed a fan’s album, that same man—Mark David Chapman—waited outside The Dakota with a .38. As Lennon walked toward the entrance, Chapman pulled the trigger. Four shots hit Lennon in the back and shoulder. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital, but at 11:15 pm, doctors pronounced him gone. He was just 40 years old.
50. His Final Act Was Cut Short
The cruelest twist of fate? Lennon’s journey of reinvention had ended just as it was beginning again. As U2’s Bono later reflected, “He hadn’t always been the man he wanted to be, yet he kept struggling to redefine himself and find himself. His real strength was his raw honesty and vulnerability”.
And speaking of Lennon's fight to redefine himself, we've got to take it back to his rowdy youth and the terrifying incident at Paul McCartney's 21st birthday bash.
51. He Lost It
Remember when Lennon was at Paul McCartney's birthday party and the DJ made a joke about Lennon's honeymoon? It certainly hit a nerve, because when Lennon snapped, he turned the party into a horror show, beating the DJ with a stick in a brutal, bloody frenzy. He later confessed, “It was the first time I thought ‘I could [end] this guy’. I just saw it, like on a screen—that if I hit him once more, that was going to be it”.
Cynthia Powell claimed he swore he’d never lose control like that again. The DJ was never quite the same—and yet, somehow, people always forgave Lennon.
John Lennon rebelled against nearly everything, and in doing so, he rewrote what it means to be an artist. If he’d played it safe, he wouldn’t still be messing with our heads—long after the music stopped.
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Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
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