Christopher Nigel Walley (born 30 June 1941) is an English former golfer and tea-chest bass player and manager, best known for his association with band The Quarrymen, the precursor of The Beatles which included John Lennon.
[1] The Walley family lived in Vale Road, Liverpool, which was at the back of Lennon's home at 251 Menlove Avenue, belonging to his aunt and guardian, Mimi Smith.
[5] Playing tea-chest bass with the group from 1956 to 1958, Walley lost the tea chest when he left it at a bus stop after being threatened by two aggressive local boys.
[7] He secured two intermission concerts at the Gaumont cinema (near Penny Lane) on Saturday afternoons, and for the group to perform at parties and skiffle contests in the Liverpool area.
[10] Paul McCartney made his debut with the group on Friday, 18 October 1957, at a Conservative Club social—organised by Walley—which was held at the New Clubmoor Hall in the Norris Green section of Liverpool.
[11][12] Lennon and McCartney wore cream-coloured sports jackets, which were paid for by Walley, and he collected half a crown per week from each member until the bill was settled.
[13] Walley stopped managing the group after his family moved from Vale Road to New Brighton on the opposite bank of the River Mersey to Liverpool, which was too far to be practical,[1] and because he had contracted tuberculosis.
At about 9:30, Walley left her to walk up Vale Road and she crossed Menlove Avenue to the central reservation between two traffic lanes, which was lined with hedges that covered disused tram tracks.