John Lennon exemplar of the self absorbed childish left.

A cruel, greedy, selfish monster: A peace-loving visionary? No, argues a blistering book. John Lennon was a nasty piece of work who epitomised our age of self-obsession

• John Lennon was placed seventh in a list of the greatest Britons of all time
• BBC poll in 1999 declared lyrics to his song 'Imagine' the nation's favourite
• Despite his image as a man of the people, Dominic Sandbrook argues that Lennon's only driving thought was: 'We, me, me'
• Even his biographers struggled to 'justify his cruel streak, his eagerness to sneer at anybody different,' Sandbrook writes in his new book
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By DOMINIC SANDBROOK FOR THE DAILY MAIL

The occasion seemed perfect for John Lennon. A group of lecturers at Guildford School of Art had been sacked for backing a student sit-in.

Now they were holding an exhibition of their work and Lennon — art-school educated and now a hippy superstar with a reputation for being anarchic and outspoken — was invited to open it. 

He turned up in a fur coat and dirty tennis shoes amid excitement that he and girlfriend Yoko Ono would declare their support for the cause.

Instead, he just handed out pieces of paper on which were written: 'Fold nine times — John Lennon, 1968.'

Then, without a word about the lecturers, he headed for the exit. It was a typical performance from a man whose driving thought was only ever: 'Me, me, me.'

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