Friends of Williamson's Tunnels

14/06/2026

Join us on Monday 6th July 2026 for our monthly meeting.

Our guest speaker this month is Gerard Gilligan, who will talk about “William Lassell 1799 – 1880; Telescopes, Planets and Drinking Beer”.

William Lassell has been described by several historians of astronomy as a “Grand Amateur”, and many of them did exist in 19th century Britain. These wealthy Victorian gentlemen and several ladies used their own independent means to pursue a passion for the science of astronomy. Lassell, born in 1799 in the Lancashire town of Bolton became an accomplished astronomical observer, designer and builder of large speculum mirror telescopes.

However his passion for astronomy was paid for indirectly by the thirsty workers, seafarer’s, and the local residence of the growing maritime port of Liverpool. It was from this great Victorian city that after 1825 as a local brewer Lassell financed, his great telescopes, observatories and extend our knowledge of our outer solar system, the giant gas planets and their satellites. He is best known for the discovery of Triton, the largest moon of Neptune, just days after the planet itself was first identified in 1846. He also mapped many deep sky objects.

The talk will describe not only his astronomical achievements and accomplishments with the development of the telescope, but his social and family background.

The talk is also supported by a 42 page booklet, published in 2021 with the aid of The Society for the History of Astronomy, and available to purchase from the society.

As usual, the talks will be followed by an update on the latest Williamson Tunnels news with lots of opportunities for questions and answers.

Our monthly meetings are open to everyone.

If you’re already on our mailing list we’ll e-mail you with the Zoom link close to the date. If you want to be on the invitation list, or you’re unsure whether you already are, just fill in the form on our website (link below) and we’ll do the rest.

https://williamsontunnels.com/get.../fowt-monthly-meeting/

FoWT Monthly Meeting
Monday 6th July 2026 7:00pm
Zoom (link will be e-mailed a few days before)

The Friends of Williamson’s Tunnels hold regular monthly meetings online using Zoom, where members and Non-Members alike, can get together to chat and get updates on our progress. We normally…

07/06/2026

This week, first week of June, was National Volunteers’ Week.
As you may know, FoWT is run entirely by volunteers.

The diggers, the guides — everything FoWT does, is powered by a dedicated (some say slightly barmy 😂) band of volunteers who give up their time to keep the story of Joseph Williamson and his incredible tunnels alive.

To every single volunteer: thank you.
Your passion, graft and good humour are what make FoWT what it is. Whether you’re underground digging, guiding visitors, helping behind the scenes, or supporting us in a hundred unseen ways, you are the heart of this charity.

We simply couldn’t do it without you. ❤️

07/06/2026

A big part of FoWT’s mission is education.

Dr. Aliki-Myrto Perysinaki, a Senior Lecturer in Architecture at Liverpool John Moores University, made contact with us, enquiring about the possibility of bringing students to Mason Street as part of their studies. Of course we were delighted to be able to help.

Three LJMU Architecture students, Roma, Mateusz and Lara spent time measuring, surveying and 3D‑scanning the chambers to create concept designs for a future visitor centre on the Williamson’s house site, at Mason Street. Their work is outstanding, and we were proud to see it showcased at the University.

Huge thanks to the students, Dr Aliki‑Myrto Perysinaki and colleagues, plus everyone supporting ongoing scans and research

You can see their 3D scans here https://williamsontunnels.com/2026/06/05/amazing-new-3d-scans-beneath-mason-street/

And remember — as impressive as the scans are, nothing beats seeing the tunnels in person. Book a visit and experience Williamson’s underground world for yourself.

Whilst FoWT’s volunteers love digging and showing visitors around Williamson’s World, a big part of our charity’s remit has always been education. So, we strive to work with Schools, Universi…

31/05/2026

A few months ago we were visited by George Toohey, who has his own YouTube channel, G2E Media, and he had an explore of the tunnels and did some filming.

This week he was back in the area, doing a feature on the multi-storey car park which is adjacent to our House Site, and has an interesting feature to do with Joseph Williamson and the tunnels.

As part of creating his video, George came back to us on Wednesday to do some filming.

A link to his video is below, but check out his channel, lots of other interesting videos on there. Give him a like and subscribe

Morgan Sindall Construction has handed over the 14-storey car park to Liverpool City Council.Designed by KKA, the car park has 1,249 spaces for cars, includi...

24/05/2026

Join us on Monday 1st June 2026 for our monthly meeting.

Our guest speaker this month is Iain Betson, who will talk about “The BBC And The Bomb: Cold War Broadcasting From The Bunkers”.

From the 1950s to the 1990s, if the Cold War had turned hot, the Government had well-laid plans for what to do in the event of a nuclear strike on Britain.

Part of those plans was the implementation of the BBC-produced, but Government-directed, Wartime Broadcasting Service: A single national radio station that would have replaced ALL radio and TV services in the UK.

Originally conceived to provide both information and boost the morale of survivors whilst they waited for rescue.

But for many it would have been the last voice they ever heard…

Where would it have been broadcast from? What would have been heard? (you would be surprised!) Who, in the event of an attack, would have descended into the bunkers to broadcast it?

And, he asks, does such a service exist today?

About the Speaker
Apart from two years, when he built nuclear missiles at a secret research centre, (true story!) and being a signatory of the Official Secrets Act as a result, Iain Betson has worked all his professional life in the television and radio broadcasting industry, both in the UK and internationally. A BBC trained radio engineer and training instructor, he trained many of the journalists you see and hear on UK radio and television news.

As usual, the talks will be followed by an update on the latest Williamson Tunnels news with lots of opportunities for questions and answers.

Our monthly meetings are open to everyone.

If you’re already on our mailing list we’ll e-mail you with the Zoom link close to the date. If you want to be on the invitation list, or you’re unsure whether you already are, just fill in the form on our website (link below) and we’ll do the rest.

https://williamsontunnels.com/get.../fowt-monthly-meeting/

FoWT Monthly Meeting
Monday 1st June 2026 7:00pm
Zoom (link will be e-mailed a few days before)

The Friends of Williamson’s Tunnels hold regular monthly meetings online using Zoom, where members and Non-Members alike, can get together to chat and get updates on our progress. We normally…

17/05/2026

We recently announced the online publication of our special 30th Anniversary, Friends of Williamson’s Tunnels members magazine, “The Mole” issue 35, and is available on our website, for members.

This special 30th anniversary version, has also been produced as a hi-quality heavyweight booklet, in celebration of our special year. The printed version is available for all members to collect direct from Mason Street during our open days on Wednesdays and Sundays if you would like a hard copy.

This new edition and the complete archive of Moles is available on https://williamsontunnels.com/the-mole-members-magazine/

Please Note: The Mole magazine is specially for members of FoWT, with a password being required to view each edition. You will find this password in the e-mail that we sent to members, announcing the release of the new Mole. If you're a member and haven't received the email, you can go to the above link to request a new password.

10/05/2026

Nothing to report this week, both tunnel sites are keeping the volunteers busy, especially the guides, with the tours proving as popular as always.

We've been delving through the archives again, and we found a great photo of Level 3 and Level 4 before we'd started any digging.
Taken just at the bottom of the stone steps that lead down from Level 2.

We've taken a similar photo today, from the same location, to show the same view as it is now. A massive difference, with Level 3 & 4 empty, and the metal gate and staircase beyond, down to the depths of Level 4.

A massive achievement by the volunteers to empty the tunnels.

Thanks to Chris Iles and Mike Rogers for the early and modern photos.

03/05/2026

Great news also this week, as FoWT win TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Award 2026, for 9th consecutive year!

This is an amazing achievement for the volunteers of FoWT, who are delighted to have achieved this award for the 9th time.

2026 is an important year for the Friends of Williamson’s Tunnels. We celebrate our 30th anniversary later in the year, whilst we also celebrate our success with visitors coming to the Williamson’s Tunnels.

As well as local visitors from Liverpool or North West England, we are seeing increasing numbers come from further afield too, from Scotland and all the way down to Cornwall.

However, the biggest surprise continues to be the ever increasing number of visitors from overseas. Especially those arriving by cruise ship. They normally just get one day in the city, and they choose a tour of the Williamson’s Tunnels with FoWT, over the many other top attractions in Liverpool.

So a massive thank you to everyone that has visited us, leaving us their reviews on TripAdvisor. https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g186337-d11880063-Reviews-Williamson_s_Tunnels_Friends_of_Williamson_s_Tunnels-Liverpool_Merseyside_Englan.html

If you have not yet had a tour, or you perhaps visited us some years ago, it may well be worth a return visit. You may not recognise the tunnels following the progress we have made during our excavations. Head to our https://williamsontunnels.com/visit-the-tunnels/ to book your tour.

03/05/2026

This week a number of our guides attended a first aid course. Some for a refresh and others for the first time.

They learned skills that could prove vital in an emergency, including CPR and using a defib.

Hopefully, we will never have a situation where we have to put those skills into action, but it's reassuring to know that our guides and a number of our volunteers are trained.

Here's a Mandy, Clare and Mike training in CPR, thanks for Chris for the photo.

27/04/2026

A few weeks ago we welcomed Radio Merseyside to the tunnels. They wanted to record a feature on us to celebrate our 30th Anniversary year.

They've just released it on BBC sounds, the link is below.

Speaking of our 30th Anniversary, we are planning a few special things to celebrate this milestone. Including a soon to be published 30th Anniversary edition of The Mole.

Celebrating 30 years uncovering and preserving Liverpool’s mysterious Williamson Tunnels.