Where did John Lennon live in Sandbanks?

John Lennon bought his much beloved Aunt Mimi (Smith) a bungalow in 1965 on the now exclusive peninsula of Sandbanks. The house was called Harbours Edge and sat on the waters edge near North Haven Point close to the Sandbanks Ferry.

Mimi Smith, John Lennon's aunt, on the steps of her house in Sandbanks

Mimi Smith, John Lennon’s aunt, on the steps of her house in Sandbanks

In 1965 Mimi looked at three houses and settled on Harbour’s Edge,a six-bedroomed harbour fronting semi-bungalow at 126 Panorama Road. At the time, although Sandbanks was rising in popularity, the house was only worth £3,500 but John Lennon payed £25,000 to purchase the property.

Mimi enjoyed a quiet life in her home in Sandbanks. It’s said she would often visit the nearby ferry shop every morning to buy her daily newspaper, bread to feed the birds and stamps (she often replied to letters from adoring Beatles fans). She enjoyed the views over to the purbecks and Brownsea Island and spent most of her days reading and gazing out over the harbour towards Brownsea and watching the sail boats as they serenely drifted by.

John Lennon often visited his Aunt Mimi with Julian and his then wife Cynthia. Mimi kept a bedroom of her house just for him and John used to hang many of his Gold Records up on the walls.  John is reported to have said he loved to do cartwheels on the sand of Sandbanks Beach and loved relaxing on the terrace. The peace and tranquility must have been a far-cry from the madding crowds and screaming fans!

John and Cynthia divorced in 1968 and John continued to visit Mimi on Sandbanks with Yoko Ono. Later, in a 1981 television interview, she said

“He would just turn up and there would be a whirlwind when he arrived, it was usually when the pressure got a bit much. He used to like to come here and turn cartwheels on the beach just by himself; there was nobody else there.”

After John’s death in 1980 a broken hearted Mimi kept largely to herself for her remaining years at Harbour’s Edge until she passed away in 1994 at the age of 85. Her funeral was here in Poole and the floral tributes included ones from Paul, Ringo, and George.

The original Harbour’s Edge house has long since been replaced. It was sold shorly after Mimi passed away and a year later, it was demolished and the site redeveloped. The current property was renamed ‘Imagine’ and went on the market for £7,250.000.

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