Related Articles
On the surface Birmingham has a lot to offer – but have you ever wondered what lies beneath?
Most shopping in the city centre will be unaware a haunting 400m tunnel runs below their feet.
Specifically, if they’re standing inside or near The Mailbox – now a shop, bar and restaurant haven, but once home to all of Birmingham’s post.
READ MORE: See inside Birmingham’s abandoned Odeon Queensway cinema
This eerie tunnel was used by Royal Mail workers transporting deliveries between a sorting office, built in 1970, to New Street Station.
Electric trucks would lug cages full of letters and parcels from trains, before ferrying them to the office to be sorted.
The office, based at the site of a former railway goods yard, alongside our canals, was the largest building in Birmingham at the time.
It also laid claim to being the largest of its kind in the country – and some of its original features still exist today.
The tunnel, which spookily doesn’t appear on any maps, is still intact. But it’s rarely seen other than during special exhibitions.
Last year, a public ballot was held for people to go behind the scenes of the underground network as part of Birmingham Heritage week.
At the time, organiser Network Rail said it was “blown away” at the number of people who applied for tickets to get a rare glimpse of the near-forgotten tunnel.
Interestingly, city jewellers, so the rumour goes, would post diamonds to themselves on a Friday, as it would work out cheaper than storing rocks in a vault over the weekend.
Before the sorting office was built, two others were based in Victoria Square until the late 1960s.
An underground tunnel already existed to serve these office from New Street Station, but was later extended to connect them to where The Mailbox stands today.
Royal Mail moved its operation to Aston in 1998 and the Mailbox opened in 2001, before reopening again in 2015 after a £50million cash injection.
We are relaunching our hidden spaces series and would like to hear from you on places to visit.
Email harry.leach@reachplc.com with ideas and follow our ‘hidden Brum’ tag to keep up to date with latest.
Read more: Take That, Robbie Williams and Spice Girls tribute acts to perform at Shropshire 90s concert
Read more: The 10 best places to eat at Merry Hill – according to shoppers
Keep up with the latest on days out, nights out, shopping and more with our Daily What’s On Email updates
