The Secret Garden Cemetery Shivers

St James’ Cemetery Ghost Tour

Begin your Journey within the midst of the city’s striking Georgian Quarter outside the famously haunted hostelry, The Philharmonic Pub where you are surrounded by the former hospitals, asylums, workhouses and Victorian children’s homes once served by the Necropolis.

An experience that embraces the gruesome chapters of Victorian Public Health and the innovations therein, The Secret Garden Cemetery Shivers Tour explores the grim narrative of the darker side to Liverpool’s past, and stitches together the beginning, middle and end, where death completes us all.

Our journey also explores our philosophies to death and dying – hark dear creatures, is it Death that makes life worth living?

Popular with all age groups The Secret Garden & Cemetery Shivers appeals to families and friends looking for something different to enjoy together. It’s a great alternative for a team building activity or indeed a romantic scare for two – this experience has something for everyone.

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Tour Times

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Prices:

£13.00

(please note all bookings will have an additional 6% booking fee)

Duration

Approx 1 hour & 30 minutes.

Route spans 1.5 miles approx (2,800-3000 steps)

Start Location

Outside The Philharmonic Pub, Hope Street, City Centre.

ENSURE YOU ARRIVE 10 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE TOUR BEGINNING

End Location

Anglican Cathedral, Upper Duke Street, City Centre

Late Arrivals

If you are Late by 5-10 mins head down Hope Street towards the Anglican Cathedral

(approaching, you will pass the Philharmonic Hall on your left and Hope Street Hotel on your right)

Think Independently

Check out Shiverpool’s hand picked collection of independent venues to be enjoyed before or after your Shiverpool tour. With so many unique bars and restaurants, you are guaranteed a marvellous evening!

Further Reading & Interesting Links 

Shiverpool would like to thank the whole team of volunteers from the Friends of St James' for their work and care of this ancient site... If you’re interested in getting involved volunteering please click HERE

Over the many years that Shiverpool has delivered street theatre and storytelling here we have admired the dedication of the team that help keep the site in excellent condition for the enjoyment of Liverpool's citizens.

Thank You!

We would highly recommend anyone interested in the history of Liverpool and this unique, otherworldly space to check out the website here

Other Excellent Resources

An Article in The Liver 1828

A Fictional Ghostly Walk Published in The Porcupine

“Cathedral Feathers" Published in The Liverpool Echo 1932

The Cathedral Wild Birds' Sanctuary 1932 

Bird Cameos from our Local Sanctuaries In Mersey Vol VII, 1935

And by day if you fancy a walk...

If you stop and listen for a moment as you walk through you won’t hear much that would confirm you were in the middle the urban sprawl. What you will hear is the breeze playing through the leaves of trees - sycamore, ash, maple and beech, as well as the happy and uplifting song of busy blackbirds, bluetits and sparrows.

If you stick around long enough you might even spot the family of rabbits that have taken up residence in one of the old tombs.

Primroses, ox-eye daisy, poppies, violets, foxgloves, celandines, red campion, bluebells, cornflowers, buttercups and marigolds give the place a wild meadow feel, and great splashes of colour everywhere from spring right through to autumn.

“The patterns of light, the gradations of green that go through there and the pools of sunlight – I mean it’s just stunning!”

Shiverpool Recommends
St James' Cemetery & Hope Street, 1960s Looking down on Hope Street and the cemetery from the cathedral tower. Gambier Terrace is in the top of the photograph with Hope Street dividing the houses from the cemetery. The ramps and catacombs are clearly
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Tunnel, 1960s Looking up the pedestrian tunnel cut into the rock. A large obelisk is on the slope to the right of the tunnel and appears to be marked on the Ordnance Survey map of 1847. Source: Graham Smith/David Wrightson in Quentin Hughes - Seapor
St James' Cemetery, 1960s Looking south over the many monuments and flatstones of section Av, from above. The east wall and catacombs run along the left side of the image, with the path on the right side. Memorials fill the main part of the photograp
St James' Cemetery, 1831 "The cemetery at Liverpool, showing Mr Huskisson's Grave &c. &c." Published by Whittaker & Co. in La Belle Assemblée (new series) for June 1831. by T. T. Bury. Water is flowing from the spring in the bottom left corner of th
Minister's House Taken during the construction of Liverpool Cathedral Showing the oratory and minister's house, and the Lower Western Terrace.
Gambier Terrace and Ramps A photograph taken in the mid-20th century looking towards the north-eastern corner of the cemetery. The majority of the grounds are covered in gravestones and memorials. The catacombs and ramps of the east wall can be seen.
St James' Cemetery, c.1830 This picture is by T. T. Bury and W. Read and shows St James' Cemetery looking east. The side of the oratory with one column visible stands tall in the right of the image. A woman with a child are draw small in the foregrou
Huskisson Monument, c.1955 This image shows Huskisson's mausoleum surrounded by overgrown vegetation and trees. The tops of a few other headstones are visible above the long grasses. The mausoleum of William Huskisson was designed by John Foster Jr a
St James' Cemetery, c.1955 Source: Peter Fleetwood-Hesketh (1955) Murray's Lancashire Architectural Guide London: John Murray
Spring, 1942 This photograph shows the spring in 1942 surrounded by a curved metal railing.
Lodge, 1942 The lodge at the southern end of the cemetery is seen from Upper Parliament Street in 1942.
Huskisson Monument, 1942 The mausoleum of William Huskisson designed by John Foster Jr and built in 1834, adapted from the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens.
Huskisson Monument, 1942 The mausoleum of William Huskisson designed by John Foster Jr and built in 1834, adapted from the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens.
Oratory and Gravestones, 1896 This photograph shows the northern end of the cemetery in 1896. Rows of memorials are in the foreground of the image, with the oratory on the higher ground on top of the cliff behind. The memorials include three crosses,
St James' Cemetery, 1858 This illustration is from Fraser's Guide to Liverpool (1858). It looks south and shows all the main features of the cemetery. A windmill is shown at the far end on Upper Parliament Street. The oratory is on the right, with St
St James' Cemetery, Looking North, 1829 T. M. Baynes/Fenner 1829
Quarry and Windmill, 1821 This image is by S. G. Nicholson from 1821. It features the windmill that stood on the site of the oratory and the steep rock cliff faces of the quarry as well as one of the tunnels. There are two churches in the distance, t
St James' Cemetery, c.1830 This lithograph by W. C. Crane shows the cemetery around 1830. The minister's house is shown on the mount at the right of the picture, with the houses on Hope Street (Gambier Terrace) on the left. The centre of the image is
South View of Cemetery This lithograph by Barrow & Crane shows the cemetery from the south. The oratory is on the higher ground to the right, and the minister's house is on the mount in the centre of the image. The ramps, catacombs, and railings alon