The Grade II Listed Building is an important part of London Road’s heritage, but has been boarded up for almost three decades
17:01, 12 Jul 2026Updated 17:13, 12 Jul 2026
Prince of Wales Hotel pub on corner of London Road and Moss Street in Liverpool city centre(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
A historic and much-loved city centre pub has been partly boarded up for almost 30 years, resulting in much speculation over the last three decades. The Grade II Listed building has a prominent place in the heritage of London Road, but despite being subject to several planning applications, it continues to be disused.
The Prince of Wales Hotel is regarded as one of the most beautiful pub buildings in Liverpool, but the ECHO understands the property has been partly boarded up since 1999. During that time, it has become the source of ongoing conjecture about its long-term vacancy.
In May, the ‘Lovely Liverpool’ Facebook page, posted about the former pub, “It is such a shame to see a grand old public house with so much heritage not being used.”
This prompted more than 140 comments, which included an array of different memories associated with the pub, and questions about the owner’s future plans.
Prince of Wales Hotel pub on corner of London Road and Moss Street in Liverpool city centre(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
Derek Moore posted: “According to our family history a member of our family worked there in 1910, I drive past it virtually everyday and look at the door and think how many times he’s walked through it.”
Mary Vernon recalled: “Does anyone remember the 2 women who used to come in midweek to read your Palm or your cards. They always had a queue waiting for them when they arrived.”
Anthony Doran wrote: “Beautiful structure preserve it and put life back into it. Instead of letting it decay.”
The ‘Prince of Wales Public House’ was put for sale in 2018, according to a listing on LoopNet, which confirmed the property was built in 1891. The site also has a page on Historic England’s website, where it’s been categorised as a Grade II Listed Building since 1975.
Google Maps street view imaging for the location goes back to 2008, and shows the building in an almost identical condition to what you see now. Just like today, the lower windows are boarded up, as well as the central doorway – the only difference being the current absence of ‘For Let’ signs, seen periodically fixed to the property over the last three decades.
Prince of Wales Hotel pub on corner of London Road and Moss Street in Liverpool city centre (Image: Liverpool ECHO)
The ECHO also researched the council’s planning portal and found eleven listings for the old pub site, submitted between 1995 and 2007. They include plans to refurbish the building and others which propose to convert it into new apartments and commercial premises.
Ten of those planning applications were approved with conditions, but each one has now expired, with no definite plans currently attached to the property.
After researching the Land Registry, the ECHO can now report that Liverpool City Council own the freehold to the property.
Responding to questions about the ongoing disuse of the site, and what plans there are in place for the future of the building, a council spokesperson told us: “The former Prince of Wales Hotel is a prominent historic building and an important part of the heritage of the London Road area.
“Liverpool City Council has the freehold interest with a long leasehold interest in place, and we are continuing to review the full property position and associated interests in the building.
The former Prince of Wales Hotel pub(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
“We recognise the significance of the building and the interest that local people have in seeing it brought back into productive use. The Council remains committed to supporting the ongoing regeneration of the London Road corridor and surrounding neighbourhoods, which have seen substantial investment and improvement in recent years.
“While we are not currently in a position to comment on any specific proposals or discussions relating to the building, we would welcome the restoration and reuse of heritage assets wherever viable opportunities can be identified.
“Historic buildings play an important role in Liverpool’s identity and can make a valuable contribution to the wider regeneration of the city centre.
“Should there be any future proposals for the site, these would be considered through the appropriate processes and in the context of the area’s continued regeneration.”