On a sunny day one can see the big imaginary billboard where John and Yoko proclaimed “war is over”. In Liverpool, at the end of August we celebrate the Mathew Street Festival. According to some it is the world’s biggest festival of cover bands. I thought it would be a Beatles Festival. I thought it would be my Beatles Festival. How wrong I was. When I think Beatles, my mind goes to long hair, peace and love, Sgt Pepper and the magical mystery tour. I think of John singing give “peace a chance”. I think of Linda McCartney veggie sausages and animal rights. I hear ’you say you want a revolution, yeah, I know we all want to change the world”. But, Mathew Street isn’t my Beatles weekend, it the their Beatles weekend. Its ’Love Me Do'and ’She loves You Yeah Yeah Yeah'and the adorable mop tops. It seems that my peace loving hippy Beatles have been erased from the streets during the festival, they have been arrested and sent away, for embracing transcendental mediation and expanding their minds. My Beatles were banished from Liverpool’s streets this August as they themselves, went into their self imposed exile. Wandering the streets during this two day music festival, I wonder if Liverpool still hates hippies? There are no tie dyed shirts, you would be hard pressed to find camper vans for sale in uk, no long hair, a lot of beer, but no smoking. Its a glorious sunny day, but almost nobody is dancing while there are some women in long flowing dresses, they pair them with scary high heels. And the horror at the top of it all? a man with an imagine t-shirt. Imagine there’s no heaven? No: Imagine there’s no YOKO. War might be over, but nobody has given peace a chance.