Abbey Road Crossing Becomes National Heritage Site
The Abbey Road pedestrian crossing in Northern London is one of the world’s most famous because it is on the cover of a Beatles album. Now, the British government has put it on the list of national heritage sites.
The crossing, however, is not in the exact same place it was when the Beatles walked over it in 1969. It was moved about 3 meters because of traffic reasons in the 1970s. For real fans of the Fab Four it doesn’t matter, the site still remains a place which thousands of Beatles fans visit every year.
Normally, only buildings and other architectural sites get the award. It is the first time that a section of a street became part of Britain’s National Heritage. The crossing is near the Abbey Road studios where the Beatles made most of their records. Today it can be seen around the world on a special webcam (http://www.abbeyroad.com/visit/ ). The studio building itself became listed by British Heritage last February.
The photographer of the picture said he only had 10 minutes to take it. It became one of the most famous album covers of all times. The Abbey Road album was the last one the Beatles completed before they broke up.
Sir Paul McCartney, who was barefoot in the photograph, said that the news was great for the legendary band. It came only a few weeks after iTunes started selling Beatles downloads on their website.
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Words
- award = prize
- barefoot = without any shoes on
- break up = to separate
- complete = finish
- cover = the image or picture that is on a record or a CD
- heritage = the customs and traditions of a country
- heritage site = a place that is worth protecting because it is culturally important for a country
- legendary = famous, well-known
- list = to be on the list
- National Heritage = the government organization that takes care of old buildings and other historical places
- pedestrian crossing = street crossing for people on foot
- remain = stay
- section = part
- traffic = cars and trucks moving across the road