St Mary's Creative Space

St Mary’s Creative Space sits at the top of St Mary’s Hill in Chester, beside Chester Castle. The building began as the Church of St Mary-on-the-Hill in the Norman period and was rebuilt in the 14th and 15th centuries. Its red sandstone walls and three-stage tower still show traces of Civil War damage and later restorations. The church’s exterior mixes Tudor doorways and 16th-century tower stages with 19th-century additions. Inside, the Perpendicular nave contrasts with Decorated chancel arches and a richly carved medieval roof. The interior walls hold pre-Reformation stoups and faded wall paintings. The space is worth visiting for its Grade I listed fabric and the events it now hosts. Chester Music Society gives regular concerts here, and Theatre in the Quarter programmes art exhibitions and performances. The building’s history includes damage in 1645, a tower shortened in 1745, and restorations by James Harrison in the 1860s and J. P. Seddon in the 1890s. Inside are 72 monuments, including effigies of Philip Oldfield and Thomas Gamul with their families. The church also preserves eight bells, the oldest from 1657, and parish records dating back to 1547. Visitors find a stripped interior with medieval roof bosses and Victorian stained glass by William Wailes. The east window of the north chapel contains fragments of a Crimean War memorial by George Hedgeland. Wall monuments record the Randle Holme family of memorial painters and William Currie, carved by James Harrison. The space now functions as a concert hall and gallery, with programmes ranging from local performers to national acts. Outside, the narrow lane leads down to the River Dee, and the castle grounds lie just beside the building.