Shiverpool: Ghost and History Tours
Carmel Smickersgill, Tours & Activities Editor
Underneath the shiny surface of Liverpool’s city centre, lurks a lesser known gruesome history. Join Shiverpool as they bring these ghoulish stories to life. Over the autumn and winter you can find extra dates for the infamous Hope Street Shivers tour, the perfect immersive street theatre experience to try with the family as the nights get darker. Usually there are three distinctive tours to choose from, so you can decide exactly how you want your spine to be chilled.
Hope Street Shivers tour is a chilling journey where you will be unearthing the grim past of the area between Liverpool’s two Cathedrals. Starting outside the Philharmonic Pub, the Shiverghouls will guide you into the nooks, crannies and pyramids that lurk in the shadows of Hope Street. Along the way you’ll visit the theatre where legends like Jonathan Price, Julie Walters and Pete Postlethwaite cut their teeth as well as the old haunts of William Gladstone and one of the former homes of John Lennon. After hearing Liverpool’s most famous ghost story, the tour will take you down towards the Gothic Anglican Cathedral cemetery. Among the tombstones you’ll be showered with chilling tales of Sea Captains, Plague and ghosts.
For a tour that combines history with mystery, we recommend the Auld City Shivers. Starting at the Queen Victoria Monument where, in the 13th Century, Liverpool’s Castle stood, you’ll venture into the oldest streets in the city. With tales of the Napoleonic wars, Plague, Cholera and the North West’s oldest ghost story. This tour is packed with chillingly gruesome details of Liverpool’s past. Once you’re well and truly scared, the Shiverghouls will lead you to the tour’s final location. Be prepared as you descend 40 feet below ground to the underbelly of the city.
For those who enjoy a more light-hearted thrill or are younger scaremongers, be sure to check out Shiverpool’s Hidden Histories. Everybody is welcome to join this daytime tour, in which you’ll discover the stunning views, quirky architecture and historical highlights, whilst hearing tales of the city’s past.
Each tour has a limited capacity for the moment, so that social distancing can be maintained. It is advised that you wear sensible footwear, as getting to some of the more haunted bits of Liverpool includes going down steep, old, and worn down steps as well as narrow passageways.
