Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr’s Friendship: Photos Then to Now

Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are two of the biggest musicians in the entire world who rose to fame in the iconic British rock group The Beatles. They both went on to have successful solo careers when the band went their separate ways in 1970. After everything Paul and Ringo have been through together, they have a friendship that will last a lifetime.

Paul met John Lennon and his band, the Quarrymen, in 1957. The pair bonded over their shared love for songwriting and began performing together shortly after. The Beatles were formed in 1960, with Pete Best and George Harrison added to the lineup. Ringo was brought on to replace Pete for several performances before officially becoming a member of the band in 1962.

Paul and Ringo toured the world and witnessed the incredible Beatlemania movement together. They became longtime musical collaborators even after The Beatles broke up. Ringo played the drums on Paul’s 1983 hit “Average Person,” 1984’s “Not Such a Bad Boy” and 1997’s “Beautiful Night.” The drummer also tapped Paul to join in on some of his biggest hits like 1973’s “Six O’Clock” and 2010’s “You’re Sixteen.”

Both Paul and Ringo had to face the tragedy of losing John when he was shot and killed outside of his New York City apartment in 1980. When they were informed of John’s death, Ringo immediately rushed to New York to comfort John’s widow Yoko Ono, and their young son, Sean Lennon. Paul still gets teared up talking about losing his friend and longtime collaborator.

“It’s very difficult for me, and I occasionally will have thoughts and sort of say, ‘I don’t know, why don’t I just break down crying every day?’ Because it’s that bad,” the 18-time Grammy Award winner said in a December 2020 interview with CBS.

On November 29, 2001, George lost his battle with cancer at the age of 58. Just two years earlier, the guitarist was stabbed in his Friar Park home by an intruder. He suffered a punctured lung from the attack. On the 20th anniversary of George’s death, Ringo and Paul posted tributes to their former bandmate.

“Peace and love to you George I miss you man,” Ringo captioned a throwback photo of him and George in November 2021 on Instagram.

As the only two surviving Beatles, Paul and Ringo have made a point to check in on each other whenever they can. In a September 2021 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the “Peace Dream” singer revealed that he FaceTimes regularly with Paul.

“We don’t hang out with each other a lot. But if we’re in the same country, and if we’re in the same town we always have a dinner, and we say ‘hi’ or he comes over here or I go over to his house,” Ringo shared with The Irish News in January 2021.

Scroll to see photos of Paul and Ringo’s friendship over the years from The Beatles fame and beyond.