Paul McCartney turns Liverpool Beatles bus stop into a Ringo FaceTime cameo
Fans on Liverpool’s Magical Mystery Tour got a bonus sight: Paul McCartney at a red light, with Ringo Starr on FaceTime.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
3 min read
A Liverpool Beatles bus tour got the kind of cameo money cannot book: Paul McCartney in the next car, waving at fans, while Ringo Starr was on his phone screen.
The encounter happened this week during the city’s Magical Mystery Tour, according to the BBC, which first reported it Monday. The tour bus was stopped at a red traffic light when passengers spotted McCartney in a nearby car.
Neil Morton, the tour’s driver and guide, told the BBC the moment felt “surreal.” He said McCartney waved at the bus, then made the scene even more unlikely by leaning out and showing passengers that he was on a FaceTime call with Starr.
Morton told the BBC the passengers “could not believe it.” Fair enough. A Beatles tour had just been photobombed by two Beatles, one in traffic and one via video call.
Ringo shared the proof
Starr later posted the moment on Instagram, sharing a photo of McCartney that Morton had taken during the roadside encounter. In the caption, Starr wrote: “How about that for a Magical Mystery Tour in Liverpool? Peace and Love, Ringo.”
The post from Starr’s verified account drew tens of thousands of likes, according to the Instagram embed, giving fans who were not on the bus a glimpse of the quick Liverpool brush with Beatles history.
The Magical Mystery Tour is a Beatles-themed sightseeing trip in Liverpool and is billed as the longest-running tour of its kind in the U.K. dedicated to the band. Its name comes from the Beatles’ 1967 album and film project.
The tour’s website says the route runs for two hours and visits locations tied to the band’s early lives and career. Stops include the childhood homes and schools of the Beatles, Penny Lane, Strawberry Field and the Cavern Club.
The Cavern Club is a central stop in Beatles lore. Rolling Stone noted that the band made its debut there on Feb. 9, 1961.
A big year for the Liverpool tour
The Liverpool attraction had already picked up bragging rights before McCartney rolled into view. Earlier this year, the city’s Magical Mystery Tour took the top position in the U.K. category of Tripadvisor’s 2026 Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best Things To Do Awards, according to Tripadvisor.
McCartney and Starr have also had fresh music news together this year. Rolling Stone reported that the two released their first duet together in May, “Home to Us,” which appears on McCartney’s album The Boys of Dungeon Lane.
Rolling Stone reported that several tracks on the album look back to McCartney’s early years in Liverpool. The album title refers to a street in the neighborhood where McCartney and George Harrison grew up, according to the magazine.
For the fans on Morton’s bus, though, the week’s headline was much simpler: a red light in Liverpool briefly turned into the best possible Beatles stop.
This story draws on original reporting from Rolling Stone.