BBC Northwest Tonight Feature! Celebrating Liverpool’s Hidden Gem; St James’ Cemetery

Celebrating Liverpool’s ‘Hidden Gem’ St James’ Cemetery Garden with

Shiverpool & the Friends of St James’ Garden

Shiverpool was delighted to join the Friends of St James’ Garden in raising awareness of the super-natural beauty, extraordinary history and biodiversity of one of Liverpool’s most remarkable green spaces.Nestled beneath Liverpool Cathedral, St James’ Cemetery and St James’ Mount form a unique historic landscape in the heart of the city.

Once a stone quarry and later transformed into a cemetery, the site is now a much-loved public garden, rich with stories, architecture, wildlife and hidden heritage. Lucy Carew, Artistic Director of Shiverpool and Trustee of the Friends of St James’ Garden, is proud to support the Friends in celebrating this Liverpool hidden gem and helping more people discover the wider story of St James’ Cemetery.

For Shiverpool, heritage is not simply about preserving the past. It is about making it accessible, welcoming and meaningful to the widest possible audience.Places such as St James’ deserve to be explored by local communities, families, visitors, schools and people who may not traditionally engage with heritage.

Through storytelling, guided experiences, community events and partnership working, we can help remove barriers to participation and create new ways for people to connect with Liverpool’s history.The garden itself tells many different stories. Its monuments and graves reveal the lives of people who helped shape Liverpool, while its geology, trees, wildlife and dramatic landscape offer another layer of discovery entirely. It is a place where social history, architecture, nature and community come together.

It is also an important green lung within Liverpool city centre, providing space for people to walk, learn, reflect and experience nature only moments away from some of the city’s busiest streets. Shiverpool has a long connection with St James’ Cemetery through The Hope Street Shivers & The Secret Garden Cemetery Shivers Tours, but our relationship with the space continues to grow. Working alongside the Friends and other partners allows us to support the protection, interpretation and promotion of the garden while encouraging responsible public access to its heritage.

A huge thank you to the team at BBC North West Tonight for helping share the story of this remarkable place and shining a light on the volunteers, heritage and natural environment that make St James’ so special.Liverpool is famous around the world for its great landmarks, but some of its most powerful stories can still be found in the quieter places in between.

St James’ Cemetery is one of them. A genuine Liverpool hidden gem, and one we are very proud to help celebrate.

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We hope you enjoy looking at these fascinating historic drawings and photographs of St James’ Cemetery