Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s former Quarrymen bandmate Len Garry has died at the age of 84, his family confirmed, per the Daily Mail.
Garry played in the 1950s skiffle group alongside his teenage school friends McCartney and Lennon — a band that would later evolve into The Beatles in 1960.
The musician, who was diagnosed with dementia in 2024, was recently hospitalized with a chest infection. Doctors later allowed him to return home, where he spent his final days surrounded by loved ones.
In a heartfelt statement, his daughter Jane shared:
“My Dad Len Garry passed away at home in the early hours this morning. The doctor told us he had hours to live and I said straight away: “He has to come home.”
“Which the doctor allowed. I travelled with dad in the ambulance and got him home. My mum, my sister, my brother-in-law and myself stayed by Dad’s bed holding his hand, talking to him and telling him how much we love him and how proud we are of him as he was passing away and taking his last breaths.”
“I love you Dad and I will miss you Dad for the rest of my life. I’m beyond devastated.”
According to the Daily Mail, Len Garry attended the Liverpool Institute High School for Boys, where he met Paul McCartney. While still teenagers, they performed together in The Quarrymen at school dances and amateur skiffle competitions, with George Harrison later joining the lineup.
The saddest of news today. Len Garry of the Quarrymen has passed. Much love to his family, band mates, and friends from everyone at the Liverpool Beatles Museum- Mathew Street. RIP Len. pic.twitter.com/V2UiNzzyAY
— Liverpool Beatles Museum (@beatlesmuseum_) March 2, 2026
Garry also took part in The Quarrymen’s first-ever performance at Liverpool’s Cavern Club, before the group underwent multiple name changes and lineup shifts that ultimately led to the formation of The Beatles.
In 1997, Garry reunited with the surviving non-Beatles members of The Quarrymen to mark the band’s 40th anniversary, touring across the UK and later releasing four albums together.
It remains unclear whether Garry will be portrayed or referenced in the upcoming Beatles biopic project, The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event, set for simultaneous release in 2028. The films — each told from the perspective of one band member — will chronicle the group’s rise from Liverpool hopefuls in the early 1960s to global superstardom and their eventual breakup in 1970. The principal cast includes Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.
