Although this car began as an ‘overall matt black’, John Lennon, Beatles singer/songwriter and antiwar activist, became bored with the plain color and started entertaining the idea of having the vehicle painted “psychedelic”.
It was hardly an easy thing to accomplish with the Rolls-Royce, but in April of 1967 he made it so. The car’s rear seat was modified to also serve as a double bed and Lennon later had a SONY television, telephone, and portable refrigerator installed.
Because the Rolls-Royce is synonymous with British dignity, many were outraged by the vehicle’s colorful exterior, especially in downtown London. An elderly woman reportedly chased after the brightly painted Rolls and attacked it with her umbrella screaming, “You swine, you swine! How dare you do this to a Rolls-Royce.”
The Phantom V Limousine was mainly used by the Beatles between 1966-1969. Many other rock stars, such as the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, were also seen temporarily driving around in the Rolls that defined a decade.
