Congrats Sydney, you just bulldozed your own legacy

I recently returned from Liverpool, in the UK, where I visited John Lennon’s childhood home. I stood in his bedroom and gazed out of the window – the very view he would have contemplated countless times.

A replica of his original acoustic guitar lies on the bed. The walls are adorned with posters of Elvis and Brigitte Bardot. The entire house is a late 1950s time capsule. Paul McCartney’s house offers a similar experience. Both are heritage-listed and protected by the National Trust.

The National Trust leaves the light on in John Lennon’s childhood bedroom to mark his birthday.Credit: Tom Compagnoni

All of Liverpool feels like a living museum – Strawberry Field, Penny Lane, the Eleanor Rigby gravestone. It’s all there, lovingly maintained, preserved for future generations. Respected. Cherished.

Shortly after that Beatles pilgrimage, I returned to Sydney to learn that the childhood home of Angus and Malcolm Young, founders of Australia’s greatest cultural export, AC/DC, had suddenly been demolished to make way for a high-rise block of flats, office spaces and a five-star hotel.

The house where Angus and Malcolm learnt to play guitar – guided by their older brother, George of the Easybeats fame – was reduced to rubble. Worse, the developer says they had no idea the house had any heritage significance.

How does something like this happen?

Before: 4 Burleigh Street, Burwood.Credit: Tom Compagnoni

The site afterwards.Credit: Tom Compagnoni

Are we Sydneysiders so drunk on property profits that we’ve lost sight of the special nuggets of nostalgia that – just like in Liverpool – should be preserved? Is Sydney’s future one that ignores its past? Are we leaving anything behind for our children beyond a lifetime of debt for a few rooms in a concrete tower?

I’m a video guy, not a writer. For years, I’ve been documenting the story of Sydney’s amnesia regarding its rock heritage. Now, out of shock, surprise and sadness, I’ve created this video – a deep dive into what happened to 4 Burleigh Street, the house that gave birth to the biggest cultural phenomenon this city has ever produced, and which has now gone. Forever.

Tom Compagnoni is the Head of Creative Video for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.