Little Willow: The Life of Maureen Starkey
Anybody who’s heard the famous Beatles’ song “Get Back” is sure to be familiar with the ending, an eruption of cheers for the band, and a cheeky remark from Paul McCartney as he says in his thick Liverpudlian accent, “Thanks, Mo.”
Mo is Maureen Starkey, a stanch Beatles fan and wife of drummer Ringo Starr. December 30, 2021, marked 27 years since Maureen’s untimely passing, but her 48 years of life were packed with adventure.
Maureen was born Mary Cox on August 4, 1946, in Liverpool, England, and was the only child of Joseph and Florence Cox. Headstrong and full of life, she left school at only fourteen, determined to become a hairdresser, and changed her name to Maureen. She spent her days flitting between training to style hair and hanging around the Cavern Club, watching the various performers. Like many other girls of the time, she was a major fan of a group called The Beatles, clawing her way towards the front of the stage, hoping to come close enough to catch their eye. Her eye, however, had been drawn to their new drummer, Ringo Starr. Eventually, she got the chance of a lifetime and asked him for his autograph. In return, he asked her to dance. Three weeks later, they began dating.
“She was a fan whose dream had come true. She had started out as one of the hundreds of teenage girls who queued day after day at the Cavern to get close to the front of the stage for the best possible view of the Beatles and in hope that they might catch the eye of one. Every fan had a favorite, and Ringo was hers.” — Pattie Boyd
As their relationship progressed, however, so did The Beatles’ success — fangirls were vicious. They were rowdy and violent, threatening and attacking any girl who was even seen near a Beatle, let alone a girl who dated one. On one occasion, Maureen was sitting in a car with the window down when a fan reached in and raked her fingernails across Maureen’s skin.
“I had to keep in the background. I might have been killed otherwise. The other girls were not friendly at all. They wanted to stab me in the back. It was part of their image, that they weren’t married and so each girl thought she might have a chance. None of them were supposed to have steadies” — Maureen Cox
At the same time, it was Maureen who was responding to their fan letters to Ringo. Together, the two went to Greece with Paul and his girlfriend, Jane Asher. Their next venture was to the Virgin Islands, sans Paul and Jane. Fearing disapproval, Maureen hadn’t told her parents that she was going off to an island with a boy — let alone a drummer. Instead, they read about it in the newspaper.
“It really did not surprise my wife or myself when we learned she was halfway across the world. In any case it wouldn’t have made any difference. I would have given her permission anyway. Maureen is a sensible girl and well able to take care of herself.” — Joe Cox
The Beatles were blowing up and taking the world by storm, leaving Ringo with a lot on his plate. He decided to focus on his career and ended his relationship with Maureen in 1964. Only a short while later, Ringo collapsed at a photo session due to a case of tonsillitis and had to undergo surgery — Maureen was by his side, visiting him every day in the hospital. Ringo proposed soon after.
In January 1965, Maureen discovered she was pregnant, and the two hastily married on February 11. She gave birth to their son, Zak, later that year — whom she saved from the terrible fate of being named XL (Ringo thought letters made cool names). They would have two more children, Jason (1967) and Lee (1970).
Maureen never became desensitized to the Beatles Magic, however, and remained one of their biggest fans and supporters. She sang in the chorus of “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill,” alongside Yoko Ono and Pattie Boyd, and hand sewed the sequins onto their Sgt. Pepper costumes. If you watch The Beatles’ “Get Back,” you’ll find many clips of Maureen giddily listening to their album, tapping her foot and bobbing her head, smiling ecstatically. She was also a huge Frank Sinatra fan, and for her 22nd birthday, Ringo arranged for Frank to record a special song for her. Sinatra reworked the lyrics of “The Lady is a Tramp” specifically for Mo and called it “Maureen is a Champ.”
By 1970, however, the Starkeys’ marriage was on the rocks, there was infidelity on both sides and Ringo was struggling with alcoholism. Her crumbling marriage left Maureen in extreme anguish and she attempted to take her own life by driving a motorcycle full speed into a brick wall — miraculously, she survived. In 1975, they officially divorced.
In the 80s, Maureen began dating Hard Rock Cafe and House of Blues founder, Isaac Tigrett. They eventually married and had a daughter, Augusta. During the opening ceremony of House of Blues, however, Maureen fainted. Doctors diagnosed Mo with mild anemia, later discovering she had a form of leukemia called Myelodysplasia. In October 1994, she was admitted into the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center where doctors did everything they could to save her — her son Zak even underwent a bone marrow transplant for her. Unfortunately, nothing worked and on December 30, 1994, Maureen passed away surrounded by her husband, four children, mother, and even ex-husband Ringo. Paul McCartney would write a song called “Little Willow” and dedicate it to her and her children after she passed.
Although Maureen’s life came to a sad close, she was a fiercely vivacious woman who never apologized for being herself. She was kind and funny and lively and oozed style, decking herself head-to-toe in beautiful outfits even until her death. She stood confidently with her thick black bangs and layers of gothic, Cleopatra eyeliner, and never once hinted at any sort of insecurity. She was a beautiful woman, inside and out.
“One thing is that every person I speak to, no matter it be someone’s grandpa or Sting and Trudie Styler, they all say she was the kindest most accepting person they ever knew, and on one or many occasions made them feel welcome when no one else would or when it was not cool to be talking to that person she would invite them to sit at her table and make them feel loved and respected.” — Augusta Tigrett
