Former Royal Hospital - Liverpool
The site was huge and by the time we had arrived it had barely changed from when it was previously in use, a large fence securing the site had been erected and multiple on site security were doing there routine patrols. We arrived first thing in the morning and scanned the perimeter noticing a few blind spots and weak points along the enclosure. After a brief discussion we decided the best approach would be to wait on the public pavement nearby and watch for the next patrol to come by which up to now were coming like clockwork, when they strolled past as expected we entered the site and immediately found cover. Once inside the boundary it seemed that all over the ground floor of the site was a hive of activity so headed for a nearby external stairway. This did add the unwanted element of exposure but after carefully timing our ascent we were soon high enough not to be noticed.
It was a long climb to the roof and all external doors leading in were locked from the inside, when we arrived on the roof were treated to an unlocked fire exit providing easy access to the building. We planned to explore each level with a focus on aiming for the operating theaters. This was made harder than expected as each time we dropped down a floor the doors to that level were often chain linked shut, apart from a couple containing empty corridors and disused office rooms. It was around this time only a few floors down from the top that I had opened a packet of fruit pastels like a spack and allowed for several of them to fall out, at least two could be heard falling down the stairwell echoing louder as they went down, it seemed to go on for ever and in the stillness of the building the falling sweets were deafening. After waiting a few minutes to see if anyone else in the building had heard the commotion we decided to Follow the limited path available.
we were heading to the bottom floor which we knew was occupied by the onsite security, we had no other option though and decided to proceed one room at a time with caution. As we ventured in distant voices could be heard and as I grabbed a door to slowly open it, a security guard walked straight past us luckily not looking in our direction and utterly oblivious to our presence, this was surprising as we were only around 4ft away from him. We froze making sure to let the slightly opened close without making a noise, whilst the door inched shut we heard him talking to others and it sounded as though we walked straight into there watchpost. It was decided that now would be a good time to head back to the stairwell we came in from and re think our plan, as we headed back more voices could be heard coming were we were heading to. We diverted into a small office room, from here we could hear more voices coming from both directions getting louder, signaling they were getting closer, it was as if they knew we were there lurking around somewhere.
The options were to wait in the empty office room hoping no one decided to poke there head in or try the only other way that we hadn’t heard any voices. This was a main corridor opposite the small hideout room, unsure of where it led we decided it was a better option than just waiting to get caught. As we paced through the uncharted corridor we noticed all side doors were locked giving us no were to hide. It was at this moment the voices from behind grew closer and we began hear there footsteps closing in so we decided to run. As we ran through the maze of open and locked doors it was clear we were being chased and after following the only route open to us we burst through a set of double doors straight into the main foyer were at least 10 security guards were based, casually sipping coffee whilst watching screens. More security guards appeared behind and in front of us no doubt the ones giving chase.
They could see the tripods in our hands and were friendly enough considering the wild goose chase we had just given them. They explained that groups were constantly getting in and we were in fact the second group to be caught that morning!. The screens they were sat down watching were linked to the internal cameras so our whereabouts was known as soon as we reached the bottom floor, it was just a matter of time before communication led them to us. We were led off sight unhappy with what we didn’t get to see but on the other hand still happy to have lasted so long given the conditions.
A few months later we found ourselves in the area one night looking for some rooftops to hit. The hospitals demolition had started by now but from the outside it didn’t seem to drastic. We decided to try the hospital roof again hoping for some ambient night time views and noticed that in the months since our last visit the perimeter fence had doubled in height with the additional top half being the type typically seen around high secure sites where the gaps are to small to make use of and its seemingly impossible to balance on top of.
After a nighttime perimeter check we found a section of the site that was out of the way and provided plenty of climbing opportunities. Before long we had found ourselves climbing another never ending external stairway, much easier this time with the cover of darkness on our side. The rooftop views were better than we expected with low fog rolling in over the Liver building giving off eerie Gotham city vibes.
We decided to try our luck again inside and to our amusement found the same fire door still open. Since our last visit the floors that were previously sealed shut were wide open and demolition had been well under way , it seemed they had started to remove cable and bash there way through the drywall working from the top floor downwards. A few floors down we did manage to find the operating theaters, they were mostly stripped out but not in to bad of a condition. Voices once again could be heard from the bottom floor along with the distinct sound of doors opening and shutting. The bottom floor was where they were based and it was pointless trying to make it around unseen so we decided to head back up and climb out.
On our exit we were almost clear of the site when climbing down a small roof to the ground floor a worker in the opposite buildings stairwell spotted us and shouted over before turning away to presumably go call security, we didn’t waste any time leaving and escaped without any hassle. A few months later i came accross an upto date photo of the site and to my surprise the majority of the hospital had been demo’d, they really werent hanging around with this one.
History
“Opened in 1978, the Royal Liverpool Hospital was established to replace three former hospitals in Liverpool. Liverpool Royal Infirmary, David Lewis Northern Hospital, and Royal Southern Hospital. It carried forward their legacies, serving the Merseyside community. Over its 44 years of operation, the Royal hospital achieved notable advancements in medical research, particularly in areas such as blindness, breast cancer, and leukemia. It was also recognized as a national centre for research in infections and pancreatic diseases. Originally scheduled to close in 2017, the hospital remained in service until 2022 due to issues with the construction company going under. At the time of its closure, the Royal reportedly had 643 beds, a substantial share of the Trust’s total of 924. Its closure was primarily attributed to outdated infrastructure and technology, which made it challenging to modernize within its 1970s framework, a limitation that underscored the necessity of the new hospital, despite its staggering cost of over a billion pounds. Work to demolish the old hospital is ongoing following the completion of a £700m new-build facility on a neighboring site. The process of knocking down the 640-bed hospital is expected to complete in 2026. This will free up the land for the health campus and further expand Liverpool’s growing Knowledge Quarter, which is the fulcrum of the recently announced Liverpool City Region life sciences investment zone”.
