As part of our Vegan Heroes series, I think we should also include some famous vegetarian celebrities, at least Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney (the latter in my next blog post). While some people say that Ringo Starr is vegan, he has so far only spoken about his vegetarianism. The most vociferous vegetarian of the Beatles is probably Paul McCartney, but Ringo Starr hasn’t exactly been sitting on his laurels either.
“If all slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian,” said Paul McCartney a long time ago. Make that vegan. If all slaughterhouses and dairy farms had glass walls, everyone would be vegan, I would like to add.
Did you know that all the Beatles were vegetarian? Well, only John Lennon seems to have been following the diet on and off, but the rest seems to have been more consistent. Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, the surviving band members, are vegetarians for life. Both are now in their 80s and look great! Many have complimented Ringo Starr on his graceful aging.
First, Back to the Beginning
There is really no need for an introduction. His illustrious road to fame with the Beatles is known to many. The screaming (and even fainting) fans, the endless list of hits, and so on. You could call Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney living legends.
So, I am going to skip through this section a little, since The Beatles were such a legendary band and there is just so much information about them online. Hits like Hey Jude, Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday, Come Together, Let it Be, Strawberry Fields Forever, And I Love Her, Love me Do, All You Need is Love, Lady Madonna, Nowhere Man, Twist and Shout, and so many more are famous in every generation.
I remember a few years ago I had a student in junior high school who absolutely loved The Beatles. Their music is timeless.
So, let’s continue with the next paragraph, why Ringo Star became vegetarian.
When and Why did Ringo Star Become Vegetarian?
A long time ago, in 1965. After watching a bullfight in Spain in that same year he dropped all meat products and turned to a meat-free diet.
He eats broccoli with everything and every morning he has blueberries with his breakfast. He also spends many hours in the gym, between three and six days a week. He says that this keeps him healthy.
‘I am a vegetarian, I have broccoli with everything and blueberries every morning. I just do stuff that I feel is good for me’
(Source: totallyveganbuzz)
Activism
I couldn’t find much, except for a few articles in different magazines, including The Rolling Stone where he talks about the benefits of his vegetarian lifestyle.
Recently in November 2020, he promoted meat-free Mondays to his 1.9 million Twitter followers.
Anything Else?
In 2016, he seemed to have flirted with a vegan diet, but he is now vegetarian. He claims that “vegans have high sugar cravings” which I disagree with.
After I did some research about it, it turns out that this belief goes back to the age-old protein deficiency argument (which is said to cause high sugar cravings). This theory has been proven wrong over and over by scientists and it is no longer a convincing argument. Moreover, I have never had any sugar cravings which is why I am having a hard time believing this.
I do understand, though, that switching to a new diet can be difficult for some and sometimes not all nutrient requirements are met, but that is not due to the diet, but rather to a lack of knowledge, experience, or perhaps even thanks to negligence. It is a little disappointing that some bloggers support that belief and so we always must make sure to do our research online.
You could also ask me why you should believe me, right? True, you can ask me that; after all, I am not a nutritionist, but I am not going to lie to you either.
I have been vegan for more than 10 years (before that I was vegetarian for 7 years), experimented with food, done lots of research, and I read countless books and reports. I also think that we can recognize the signs that our bodies give, at least most of the signs.
Western diets include too much protein, and too much of anything is not good, and especially with protein, too much isn’t necessarily a good thing. Too little isn’t either, but as it applies with every diet, everyone always needs to make sure they get all their nutrients instead of bashing a diet because they did not do their homework. That’s just what I think.
Final Thoughts
I thought it would be interesting to include one of the quieter Beatles in this series. Although I would not call him a Vegan Hero, Ringo Starr has a large fan base and he uses his stardom to spread the message of meat-free diets. Every step helps, doesn’t it?
According to Yoko Ono, Ringo Starr was the most influential Beatle. He looks great! He may be 82, but he looks decades younger.
Apparently, Ringo and Paul are still good friends. In my next post we will talk about Paul McCartney and everything he has done for animals.
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Hi Christine. Thank you for posting this article about famous vegetarian celebrities. Who knew all the Beatles were “vegetarians”. It was a very interesting read. I truly understand the health benefits of being vegetarian, but unfortunately for me, I am not a fan of vegetables. If I tried to become a vegetarian, I would likely starve to death. Regardless of that, this is a very informative article. Thanks again!
Hi Tom,
There are so many ways now to make vegetables more interesting and tasty. Instead of simply boiling broccoli florets, you could make broccoli cream. Cauliflower can be made into spicy Buffalo cauliflower wings and also cauliflower rice. The beauty of a vegan (and vegetarian) diet is that it is incredibly creative 🙂
Thanks for your comment.
I have to admit I am a huge fan of the Beatles, but I never knew some were vegetarians. It’s great to know. Also, Paul and Ringo look amazing. Thank you for writing up an interesting post on famous people.
Hi Yvonne,
I also love their music! And I agree, Paul and Ringo look amazing!
Thank you for your comment 🙂
I love the Beatles so much, and I’m quite surprise that Ringo Starr is vegetarian. Reading your article reminded me of this remarkable band.
Anyway, what is the difference between Vegan and Vegetarian? I can’t believe I can’t really differentiate both so far.
My girlfriend doesn’t eat meat. She calls herself a vegetarian, but I’m not so sure if she really knows the difference too LOL.
Also, I would like to stop eating meat but I find it a bit hard to do. What do you advice me to get started with? You said you’ve been a vegetarian for 7 years, so you haven’t been your whole life. How did you manage?
Hi Warren,
The Beatles are such a great band and their music is timeless. There are some songs I absolutely love!
The difference between a vegan and a vegetarian is that a vegetarian eats no meat, and a vegan eats no meat and no animal products such as dairy and honey. I wrote a more detailed article about the differences, if you would like to know more, you can read it here, just click on this title: The Difference Between a Vegan and a Vegetarian.
If you would like to stop eating meat, I suggest that you start excluding meat from your diet gradually. When I became vegetarian I went gradually as well; the first thing I stopped eating was pork, because I had witnessed slaughter of pigs repeatedly and I could not eat it anymore. A few weeks later I dropped beef and all other meats as well because it was obvious that that suffering was not limited to pigs but to all farm animals.
There are some excellent meat substitutes available. Beyond Meat is a company that has won much praise and is said to taste exactly like meat. You should try it out.
On my website there are also many easy recipes that you could try out.
If you have any more questions, please let me know. Thanks for your comment and good luck on your vegetarian journey 🙂
Oh, Christine, I am so glad you included a musician I actually know of, LOL. This is my youth! Picking strawberries as a summer job with a blaring “All you need is love” on someone’s radio. 🙂
I only knew of Paul McCartney being a vegetarian, not of the others. So George Harrison was a vegetarian as well? Marvellous. What a pity it didn’t save him from getting cancer. I forgot what kind of cancer he had. Do you know?
I have always liked Ringo the most. Especially in the movies they made. With that Liverpool accent and his laid-back manner of talking.
I didn’t know about this sugar-craving thing. I don’t have cravings for sugar either. Just a matter of what you are used to, isn’t it?
Hi Hannie,
The sugar thing surprised me too, that is why I did some research about it and only found some blogs where the vegan and vegetarian diets were bashed and described as “not working at all” which we know is not true. Science even backs up a vegan diet. So, I don’t think we should take this claim very seriously. I agree with you that it may just be a matter of what you’re used to.
George Harrison died quite young, at the age of 58. In 1998 he had surgery for throat cancer which was due to smoking. After beating that, he was also treated for lung cancer and a tumor. The nature of the cancer that he died of was not disclosed, I think the family wanted to keep that private.
I am glad that this time I wrote about a musician you know 😉 I hope you visit my site again when my article about Paul McCartney is out 🙂
Hi Christine,
It’s interesting to know that Ringo is also a vegetarian for a lifetime, and I like how he eats. Eat everything with broccoli or have blueberry for breakfast, which is a good alternative to replace my current eating habits.
He does look younger than his real age, and I can see that from the photos you attached here. One of the reasons might be being a vegetarian; the other might be his workout routine. Working out many hours in the gym, and he does it three to six days per week? Wow…what perseverance he gets!
Thanks for sharing today,
Matt
Hi Matt,
It’s probably the combination of a healthy diet and working out at the gym, I agree. He sure looks great for his age!
Thanks for your comment!