From the underground tunnel network beneath thousands of shoppers' feet to a mysterious red door hiding forgotten history, Birmingham is full of hidden places most people will never see. Have you ever wondered what's inside some of the city's most iconic landmarks, such as the BT Tower which dominates the skyline, or Old Joe, rumoured to have links to J.R.R. Tolkien and Lord of the Rings? Did you know there's a university office in the city where plans for the atomic bomb were drawn up five years before Hiroshima? These are just some of the hidden spaces we're exploring, taking you behind the locked doors of some of Birmingham's most fascinating hidden spaces.
Underground Tunnel Below The Mailbox
Beneath Birmingham city centre, under the feet of thousands of shoppers and commuters, is an eerie 400-metre underground tunnel. Hidden below The Mailbox, the tunnel once formed part of a Royal Mail system linking a major sorting office with New Street station. Electric trucks would lug cages full of post directly between trains and the city's main processing hub. The sorting office opened in 1970 and, at the time, was the largest building in Birmingham. Some of its original features remain in place today. The tunnel, which spookily doesn't appear on any maps, is still intact. It's rarely seen by the public other than when special exhibitions are held by Network Rail.
Below Spaghetti Junction
More than 200,000 vehicles cross Spaghetti Junction every day. Yet, out of the millions of drivers navigating Birmingham's concrete maze every year, how many have seen it from underneath? Gravelly Hill Interchange, its official name before being coined colloquially as Spaghetti Junction by the Birmingham Evening Mail, is almost unrecognisable from below. Its towering concrete supports tangle roads that stretch across 30 acres and connect 18 different routes. But, despite the scale of traffic above, the space underneath is shockingly quiet. The sound of engines fades into the background, replaced by an unexpected stillness. Set beside the stunning Aston Reservoir, home to swans, and Tame Valley Canal, the area has a peaceful atmosphere with open paths and well-maintained greenery beneath the monster structure. When I rode my bike underneath it in 2022, I was blown away by the spectacular views of the M6 meeting the Aston Expressway. I described how light was hitting the junction enough to cast shadows across its concrete pillars, in between an icy blue sky.
Inside Birmingham's Iconic BT Tower
Standing at 152 metres tall, Birmingham's BT Tower is one of the city's most recognisable landmarks, but few people have or will ever see inside it. Opened in 1967, the tower originally formed the backbone of British communications. Formerly known as the Post Office Tower and, before that, the GPO Tower, it was once a vital hub for broadcasting TV and phone signals across the country. It was equipped with four-metre wide analogue dishes and used a microwave relay system to handle up to 150,000 telephone conversations and 40 TV channels at once. Although its large satellite dishes were removed in 2012, the structure remains fully operational today, still supporting active communications links. BT has confirmed the tower remains in active use and is not due to be decommissioned. The firm told BirminghamLive in 2024: "The BT Tower Birmingham is still in active operational use. The tower retains a number of active links from the top, so is still in use for connectivity."
The University Office Where Plans for the Atomic Bomb Were Drawn Up
Tucked hidden away inside the University of Birmingham is a small, unassuming office tied to one of the most significant scientific developments of the 20th century. It was here where physicists Otto Frisch and Rudolf Peierls produced the Frisch-Peierls memorandum in 1940, the first technical paper to outline the possibility of an atomic bomb. The document, written five years before the bombing of Hiroshima, helped shape early nuclear research during the Second World War. The office itself has changed very little since then, remaining a quiet, largely unnoticed part of the university campus but with enormous historical significance. And one that most people will never see.
Inside Old Joe, Which Has Links to Lord of the Rings
Known affectionately as 'Old Joe', the Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower is the tallest freestanding clock tower in the world. Rising above the University of Birmingham's Edgbaston campus, the 100-metre tower has become one of the city's most recognisable landmarks, with students snapping celebratory images with it when they graduate. It was named after Chamberlain, who designed Old Joe on the Torre del Mangia in Siena. And, incredibly, it's rumoured to have inspired J.R.R. Tolkien's Orthanc tower in Lord of the Rings. That may sound far-fetched, but it's worth noting the legendary author studied at King Edward's School across the road from the clock. Despite being seen so often, very few know what the inside of the clock, built in the early 20th century, looks like. Inside, access is tightly restricted. However, rare inspections have revealed its winding staircase, internal lift system and unique mechanisms that allow the clock faces to change colour for special occasions. Surveyor Stewart Glover was lucky enough to snap pictures from inside the building in 2022. Stewart caught a glimpse of Old Joe's striking green lift, which can be used by up to four people at once, and the view to the top. While carrying out safety checks, Stewart climbed most of the tower's 300-plus winding steps.
The Old Jewish Burial Ground Behind Secret Red Door Near Five Ways Station
Behind a red door near Five Ways station lies a hidden Jewish burial ground dating back to the 1700s. Known as Betholom Row, the site is hidden from public view behind the bolted door which has been locked for more than a decade. Passers-by tall enough to peer over the gate should be able to make out old gravestones amongst overgrown foliage. It once served as a final resting place for members of Birmingham's Hebrew Congregation, before parts of the area were affected by railway and city development. In 1879, the UK government granted Midland Railway permission to extend the Birmingham West Suburban Railway into Birmingham New Street. Some of the bodies and gravestones affected by the new railway line were reportedly moved to Witton Cemetery. Today, the site remains sealed off, preserved in quiet isolation next to one of the city's busiest roads: Islington Row Middleway. Keith Rowe of the Hebrew Congregation told the BBC in 2016 how Betholom Row was destroyed by city development. He said: "The cemetery was originally much bigger than it is now. The previous building used by the congregation was just a few yards away from here." The site was a hotspot for people taking drugs, according to Mr Rowe. He said anti-social behaviour led to the door being sealed, with "very few people" having been there since.
