Tales of town's tunnels explored in new exhibition

An exhibition exploring the hidden history beneath Beverley's streets and historic buildings has opened.

The exhibition explores centuries of history, and the maze of pipes and cables that keep the town running.

Researcher Kloskk Tyrer said: "It's something that catches people's imaginations; mysterious stuff under the ground that you don't quite know about."

Subterranean Beverley is on at the town's Guildhall until 2 October.

Tyrer said visitors could see a video of the well under the minster, which is believed to date from Saxon times.

"They lift the tiled floor covering it once a year.

"I was there and I filmed it and we brought up a bucket of water and I drank it. That's quite an unusual thing."

There is also information about plague burials that took place near the town's railway station and burials near the friary when they were excavated in the 1960s, according to Tyrer.

Stories about secret tunnels linking buildings across Beverley have circulated for generations and remain an important part of the town's character.

Tyrer said she started to set up the exhibition as a joke because she was "always having arguments saying there are no tunnels under Beverley".

"The reason why is that Beverley is really too wet to dig a dry tunnel because we're right at the foot of the Wolds and if you dig down, you're just digging through wet boulder clay," she said.

She added that there are cellars, wells, and culverts under the town that are part of the exhibition.

"Everyone can come and make their mind up as to whether there are tunnels under Beverley, but I'm trying to explain scientifically why it might be difficult.

"I found a little secret culvert off Long Lane that really does look like a tunnel, and I made a film about that," Tyrer said.

There are also pictures and film footage of a well that was recently discovered behind the old Savings Bank on Lairgate.

Beverley Guildhall is open on Wednesdays and Fridays between 10:00 and 16:00.

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