John Lennon lived a majority of his childhood not really knowing his mother. She’d come by every now and then. But she was always in such a state that young John felt nervous to be around her. However, in his later teenage years, she established more of a presence in her son’s life. And, as it turned out, John was a chip off the ol’ block.
John Lennon’s complicated upbringing
When John’s mother, Julia, gave birth to him, his father, Fred, was out at sea. And he didn’t return for five more years. When Fred did eventually come home, he tried to run away with John to New Zealand. But Julia stopped him just in time. After lots of arguing about who should keep John, the parents decided to let little John choose. He chose his mother and that was that. Fred was off, never to hear about John again until he became one of the most famous people in the world.
But shortly after Fred left, Julia became very much enamored with the local nightlife (she used to go out a lot prior to having John). As such, John was left without a proper parental figure. So his aunt Mimi (Mary Elizabeth) took him in and raised him as his own along with her husband George.
John Lennon often acted out as a boy
Julia’s presence in John’s life was inconsistent.
“She would unexpectedly appear at Mendips, demanding warmth and affection from him,” reads The Love You Make by Peter Brown and Steven Gaines. “Then she would just as suddenly disappear, not to be heard from for months. These visits were like a tornado descending into John’s life, and he was caught in an emotional maelstrom. Finding it impossible to turn his emotions on and off, he soon cut off all feelings for her.”
During one visit, John’s mother showed up with a bruised and bloodied face. She told her son she’d been in an accident on the way over but he knew she was lying. He guessed she’d been beaten up. The sight of her made him uncomfortable so he hid in the garden until she left.
In school, John proved to be smart. But he also had a “mean sense of humor.” He’d draw satirical cartoons of his peers and teachers. He’d steal candy and toys from local stores. He’d write obscene poems.
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Though Aunt Mimi ran a “good Christian” household, she grew progressively frustrated by John’s behavior. According to TLYM, she tried beating him as a punishment. But that didn’t help anything.
John and his mother Julia—two peas in a pod
When John was about 13, his mom started making more appearances in his life again. And this time, she seemed to be doing a lot better.
“[She] was a young, attractive, spirited woman with a sense of humor astonishingly like his,” reads TLYM.
Just as John was a jokester, so was Julia.
She’d do just about anything to make John laugh. Once, she walked down the street with her underwear tied around her head like a scarf. Another time, she wore glasses without frames and stopped to ask people for directions. As they answered she’d scratch her eyebrow through the frames.
“She turned out to be much more of a chum than a mother,” reads TLYM.
Julia’s influence on John made his difficulties with school even worse. He failed all of his O levels and by his final year of high school, he was the last in his class of 20. He barely got into art college, where he would continue his hijinks. John Lennon cared about one thing and one thing only at the time—an American craze called rock and roll.
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