Death, dancing and dereliction: the iconic nightclub set for demolition
Plus: Andrew Brown's events guide to the week ahead
Hello and welcome to the 56th edition of The Southport Lead.
This is the last newsletter we’ll publish before the anniversary of last year’s attacks but that won’t be the focus of what you’ll read today. It is more than understandable that many people are finding it difficult as the date approaches, regardless of whether they had any direct connection to those involved, and that was no doubt added to with the broacast of Channel 4’s documentary this week.
If you do want to read some thoughtful and poignant words on the subject, I’d direct you to this post from the Elsie’s Story charity which explains that “our girls, our town, will not be remembered for the events of that day, but for everything we are building together”.
For this edition, we are looking over to Formby as a landmark but decrepit building faces demolition. Shorrocks Hill was once an iconic nightclub loved by many but it has long been closed and in a poor state. Soon it will be no more and a new development will take its place despite hundreds of people registering their opposition.
Once-loved nightclub to be replaced by upmarket housing and public car park
By Jamie Lopez
For more than one generation, Shorrocks Hill was the place to go for a night out. Liverpool and Everton FC players would attend, buses would bring people to the remote venue, and the drinking and dancing and the party would go on to the early hours.
During its 170 years, the site also served as a family home, country club, health retreat, filming location, Chinese restaurant, stables and currently an outdoor activity centre. It has hosted weddings, faced arson attacks, seen the tragic death of a 45-year-old man, and become a derelict attraction for urban explorers.
Soon, it will be cleared and redeveloped.
Plans have been approved which will see the historic building, which now lies in a dire state, replaced with a selection of custom-build, upmarket homes. The wider plan also includes a car park with 100 spaces and a toilet block to serve visitors to the nearby National Trust site.
The building was originally built as a family home by Dr Richard Formby who saw it as an ideal site to retire close to the beach. It would eventually open to the public, first as a country club and later as a nightclub.
In its heyday, when known as the Falcon’s Crest, the venue attracted revellers from far and wide and celebrities and footballers were regularly in attendance. Owners in that era included a former Mr Universe but eventually he was forced to sell up amid financial woes.
Like so many others, the business was forced to diversify and a succession of other operations - including the restaurant and the fitness centre - would attempt to make a success of the picturesque location.
In 2007, the site was bought by the Ascot Group, a Liverpool-based property development firm which had ambitions to revitalise the site. Speaking at the time, chairman Terry Riley said: “As a local business, we are committed to helping grow Formby’s reputation as a desirable destination for both business and pleasure.
“Our ambition is to see Shorrocks Hill Country Club attract more corporate events including business seminars, meetings and forums.
“We also plan to enhance the club’s already popular range of private function and wedding services as well as improving the overall offering for local and regional communities.”
Unfortunately, the biggest incidents to occur at the venue after that were two arson attacks. Both occurred in a matter of months in 2009 and were reported by the Liverpool Echo to be part of gangland attempts to extort Mr Riley and his then business partner John Ball.
Worse tragedy was to follow in 2016 when an electrical fire broke out on the site and took the life of Andrew Coogan. Mr Coogan, 45, had been living in a caravan and working on the stables on the site when the fire broke out. He was remembered by his family as someone who “helped so many people along the way and was a pleasure to be around”.
More recently, the derelict building has provided an oddly fitting backdrop to paintball and other army-style activities which take place in the woodland behind the site and in 2021 it was used for filming of the Netflix hit Stay Close.
The series, based on a Harlen Coben novel, included scenes based at ‘Vipers’ nightclub and Shorrocks Hill was painted in bright pink to be used for exterior shots of characters’ visits to the venue. Production crews then restored it to its previous appearance and the building has remained in poor condition since then.
Recent years have also seen it become targeted by urban explorers who have broken into the building to examine the wreckage which remains inside. CDs and open drinks are among the left behind items photographed in the former nightclub area.
Soon, the site will be brought back to use in a different manner. The historic building will be gone and instead the land will be home to a public car park and upmarket housing.
Last week, Sefton Council’s planning committee voted to approve a hybrid application from Ascot which allows the car park to be created and agrees to the principle of 23 homes being built on the rest of the land, which includes some green belt.
Further reserved matters applications will be needed to agree the exact details of each house but documents submitted with explain the custom-build designs include options ranging from four to six bedrooms in each one. It is also explained that the nature of the development means a separate application is likely for each home but with the outline permission granted, approval is likely.
Previous attempts to allocate the land for housing have faced fierce opposition and this time was no different. Some 800 objections and petitions were received, citing issues relating to infrastructure, highway safety, ecological impact and loss of amenity for neighbours. Countryside charity CPRE Lancashire, Liverpool City Region and Greater Manchester was among the objectors due to the harm to the green belt.
However, a report prepared for the committee concluded that “while the proposal does not fully comply with the aims and objectives of the Neighbourhood Plan, the Local Plan and all other material considerations the benefits of the proposal outweigh the identified harm”.
As such, councillors voted to approve the application.
A spokesperson said: “Liverpool based Ascot Group are very happy to confirm we have secured planning permission for a £33 million luxury residential development at our 40 acre Shorrocks Hill estate very close to Formby beach.
“We would like to thank our internal team, Sefton council planning officers, our planning advisors and all our consultants who advised us throughout this planning process.”
What’s On This Week: July 27-August 3
By Andrew Brown
Are you enjoying the school summer holidays? There’s lots to enjoy in Southport over the next few days - including the unmissable Charity Match at Southport Football Club with a stellar line-up of celebrity players and guests, all taking part to raise money for the families impacted by the Southport tragedy.
You can also enjoy a range of arts and culture with the Southport Arts Festival running from Saturday 2nd August to Sunday 10th August 2025.
Here’s what’s on in Southport between Sunday 27th July 2025 and Sunday 3rd August 2025.
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