Report - Whitchurch Hospital - Cardiff - June 2024

[Fuzzball]

Whitchurch is infinitely better than Severalls even cleared out. It’s probably top five full stop from its initial everything left and power on stage through to its now gloriously decayed state

Severalls did always seem really sparse inside, even in the 2000s, Whitchurch still has a load of stuff in it, so it's probs a lot more interesting with much more revisit appeal as there's perhaps always something new revealing itself. It just seems like a lot of risk, the place seems geared up to nab you and throw the book at you. All those local kids smashing the place up over the years, makes the owners vengent I should expect.

 

[Wastelandr]

I'd be gutted if I never saw Whitchurch, or Goodmayes. St Cadocs seemed pretty well secured when I was last there to capture general footage.
There's an in-operation mental health unit right next door to the old buildings and the residents seem very observant, along with any staff. I felt like I was intruding into the area even when keeping to the public footpaths. Strange feeling.

I've noticed that St Cadocs has recently appeared in a Netflix show too. I saw the trailer and instantly recognised the place as a county asylum, then realised it was St Cadocs. Can't remember the name of the show now, though. Darn it. St Cadocs stands-in for an orphanage and is a flashback to the 1950s it seems. The production used the exteriors and interiors. Anyway, what was particularly odd about St Cadocs, general feel or what's left?

Yes thanks, I made quite a lot of the model, although I moved house and have had to put most of it in storage so it's completely unfinished. It's gathering genuine dust and decay on top of the artificial destruction, which is very intriguing! Life imitating art imitating life. There is a great hall (reminiscent of Hellingly's), admin block (inspired by Cane Hill and Long Grove), two main buildings (Talgarth flavoured ward gallery) and loose recreations of Severalls' water tower and the exterior to Myland Court. And some Old Manor inspired cable tunnels. That's as far as I got though before moving. I've also been working on a Cane Hill documentary and that's required some miniatures building to tell part of the story.
Damn I love model making sessions! Its like crack cocaine benders for introverts.

Oh hang on, you're An abandoned asylum in miniature on Facebook! We have spoken many a time, I'm Liam who does the beyond the point site.

Love these shots, a wide variety of different asylum areas and all looking pretty faithful too. Out of interest, what materials do you use to make the brickwork and the windows?

So you pretty much described the bizareness of Cadocs there. It's because it's part asylum barely changed and part still in use. Somehow it's survived against all the odds and frankly is a glimpse into a very much overlooked corner of the NHS. Such a strange feeling creeping about on the top floor with damp and rain coming in whilst hearing people walking about going about their work on the floor below. Its situation hasn't changed at all, still possible but it does feel a bit intrusive, although maybe that infiltration element adds to the experience. The building also felt very unchanged and authentic.

 

[Speed]

Severalls did always seem really sparse inside, even in the 2000s, Whitchurch still has a load of stuff in it, so it's probs a lot more interesting with much more revisit appeal as there's perhaps always something new revealing itself. It just seems like a lot of risk, the place seems geared up to nab you and throw the book at you. All those local kids smashing the place up over the years, makes the owners vengent I should expect.

To be honest Severalls in the early 2000s would give Whitchurch a run for its money now. Most people have a skewed outlook as they only experienced Severalls after it had been derelict a decade or more and was almost completely destroyed yet had the pleasure of Whitchurch from closure. Nowadays Whitchurch is pretty stripped too, not quite severals level of stripped but its not just been left to fester like the top tier Asylums. Its Probably on a similar level to Hellingly or Severals back when they were at a similar point in the dereliction cycle really. Just waiting for it to have an open season, the hall and admin to burn down and then some 'demolition on safety grounds' now..

 

[mookster]

To be honest Severalls in the early 2000s would give Whitchurch a run for its money now. Most people have a skewed outlook as they only experienced Severalls after it had been derelict a decade or more and was almost completely destroyed yet had the pleasure of Whitchurch from closure. Nowadays Whitchurch is pretty stripped too, not quite severals level of stripped but its not just been left to fester like the top tier Asylums. Its Probably on a similar level to Hellingly or Severals back when they were at a similar point in the dereliction cycle really. Just waiting for it to have an open season, the hall and admin to burn down and then some 'demolition on safety grounds' now..

To be fair it survived it's first brief open season timed with the 2018 school summer holiday remarkably un-burned!

 

[Wastelandr]

To be honest Severalls in the early 2000s would give Whitchurch a run for its money now. Most people have a skewed outlook as they only experienced Severalls after it had been derelict a decade or more and was almost completely destroyed yet had the pleasure of Whitchurch from closure. Nowadays Whitchurch is pretty stripped too, not quite severals level of stripped but its not just been left to fester like the top tier Asylums. Its Probably on a similar level to Hellingly or Severals back when they were at a similar point in the dereliction cycle really. Just waiting for it to have an open season, the hall and admin to burn down and then some 'demolition on safety grounds' now..

I was thinking also recently Severalls had the huge grounds around it still undeveloped with its numerous villas. Whitchurch lacks that sense of scale of the whole original estate

 

[tumbles]

Severalls did always seem really sparse inside, even in the 2000s, Whitchurch still has a load of stuff in it, so it's probs a lot more interesting with much more revisit appeal as there's perhaps always something new revealing itself. It just seems like a lot of risk, the place seems geared up to nab you and throw the book at you. All those local kids smashing the place up over the years, makes the owners vengent I should expect.

Whitchurch literally would be up there with cane hill if they hadn’t have cleaned it out 4-5 years ago, it was chock full of stuff before that.

I don’t think any real risk, yeah getting caught sucks but you’ll just get thrown out, the owners couldn’t give a toss they just want rid but nobody wants it because too much is listed.. way too much

 

[Fuzzball]

Oh hang on, you're An abandoned asylum in miniature on Facebook! We have spoken many a time, I'm Liam who does the beyond the point site.

Love these shots, a wide variety of different asylum areas and all looking pretty faithful too. Out of interest, what materials do you use to make the brickwork and the windows?

So you pretty much described the bizareness of Cadocs there. It's because it's part asylum barely changed and part still in use. Somehow it's survived against all the odds and frankly is a glimpse into a very much overlooked corner of the NHS. Such a strange feeling creeping about on the top floor with damp and rain coming in whilst hearing people walking about going about their work on the floor below. Its situation hasn't changed at all, still possible but it does feel a bit intrusive, although maybe that infiltration element adds to the experience. The building also felt very unchanged and authentic.

Yep, same randomer Didn't know you were Wastlandr either. It's been great chatting about good old Sevs and related stuff. Really enjoy your videos too, solid stuff. I bet Bodmin was a bit of a trek for you guys!

Thanks! They are approximations of their real-life counterparts, sometimes borrowing elements from other asylums (like I've got a Talgarth inspired gallery but with Sunnyside floor tiles) but as I hopefully become more skilled I'd like to make some direct replicas.
Most of the imaginary asylum is packing cardboard! With old stripped-down dollshouses serving as a wooden "chassis", the hall is almost all cardboard and pine struts scratch-built . The brick is actually textured plastic sheets from the 4D model making company.
Back in 2017 I came across a clearance batch lot of wooden bay-windows, large windows and doors so most are from that. The rest are plastic ones from Ebay in 1:24 for normal windows and 1:12 scale for the hall windows.

The Cane Hill model for the documentary videos needed a bit more realism and flexibility though, as the block I am loosely recreating (Ellis on the female side), needed to be shown on camera being built in timelapses, existing and then being demolished with remote-control diggers featuring the Squibbs (Gawd rest their soul) logos, so this model uses real 1:24 scale bricks laid and cemented in. 8,000 bricks for this small section. And if that sounds tedious to do - it was, and my miniature brick-laying skills are shocking! Much more fun pulling the thing down with the toy diggers It's all a very retro Thunderbirds approach to depicting the hospital, but there's only so much sitting at a computer screen I can stand. The windows for Cane Hill were specially commissioned from a guy on Etsy - KS Creation.

I can imagine that would be really odd! Hearing modern phones and life continuing meanwhile you're looking at a room which looks like you're back in time. Lots of incongruence there! You've definitely sold me on trying to visit there again, sounds really fun, scratches that liminal space, backroomsy itch as well by the sound of it. It's unavoidable I guess having to go past the live area. And it likely keeps the place from being torched and ransacked.

 

[Fuzzball]

Whitchurch literally would be up there with cane hill if they hadn’t have cleaned it out 4-5 years ago, it was chock full of stuff before that.

I don’t think any real risk, yeah getting caught sucks but you’ll just get thrown out, the owners couldn’t give a toss they just want rid but nobody wants it because too much is listed.. way too much

Wowsers, high praise indeed! And it's all the gubbins which gives the place context. Aesthetics of peeling paint and epic corridors are lovely, but you need that mix of documentation and paraphernalia as well. So I guess Whitchurch is becoming more like Severalls in that there's increasing aesthetic value but less stuff to sift through. Shame, but also probably wise. Less to burn, less to break in to steal for, and less GDPR breaches. It's ironic that the mechanisms in place to stop the place being bulldozed is what is keeping it from being re-used which in time may lead to it being....bulldozed. I think it's the "punished to set an example" which is the biggest worry, secca/police wise or being there at the same time when some kids are doing dumb shit and getting associated with that by default.

As Wastelandr said - Whitchurch is now so encroached on by the suburbs that it's lost that sprawling feel that the others had. The grounds are key part of an asylums' allure, makes them feel more remote and out-of-time, as well as being beautiful even when they are a mess. And plus you find random villas and structures as side quests and easter eggs. The foliage makes it less likely to be seen as well, which helps with finding ways in and also being able to just stand around taking pictures and soaking up the atmosphere and the views at leisure.

 

[bawdy.horror]

Nice! Whitchurch is like my local white whale, desperate to get in there one day