St. John’s Beacon

The view from the top is good on a clear day and worth a visit with blue skies. It’s a shame you can’t walk all the way around the top (it’s still occupied and run with working offices) and in the end £4 is just at the level where it’s worth it if you’re a fan of going up towers but not worth it if you’re on the cheap and don’t care about getting a birds eye view of things

I’ve never been able to comprehend the vehemence some people have at this tower’s appearance. It’s not that ugly, is it? Yeah, it’s not exactly the Space Needle but have you ever seen old photos of it, back when it blighted the skyline of 70s Liverpool? It resembled something that was already dated before it even went up.
This is partly true. One of its design functions was as a ventilation shaft for the market below before a change in the law presumably made this somehow illegal. Built in 1969 and opened by the Queen (did she have nothing else on that day?) the structure is the second tallest in Liverpool and the thirtieth in the UK overall. Not bad for something that looks like a golf tee.
Formerly the location of restaurants that later failed, the beacon is now doing well as the headquarters of Radio City 96.7 and Magic 1548. The downside for anybody tuning in, of course, is that the smug DJs will mention this fact every ninth of a second.

Not the most attractive building in the world, St John’s Tower is distinctive and quirky to say the least. Once upon a time, the tower housed a revolving restaurant which I vehemently wish would be restored; the beacon is currently used for radio broadcasting for a couple of channels including Radio City, which while popular in Liverpool could surely be relocated somewhere else. Given the popularity of Panorama Restaurant which offers 360 degree views of the city, St John’s is surely a gold mine waiting to be tapped! The tower is open to the public with full tours available weekdays at £6.25 (concessions available) this includes exploration of the radio stations. Access to the viewing gallery alone is available on the weekends only and costs just £3.75
The scenery is staggering when you reach the top, accessed by a reported 558 stairs (or a lift!). 450 feet above the city with views of a bustling, evolving Liverpool; the estuary and Wirral peninsula right across to the Welsh mountains and even up to the Lake District; a wonderful experience made special by the hospitable staff.

Radio City is one of the UK’s most successful radio stations. The tour gives you a unique opportunity to view Merseyside’s ever changing skyline, 450 feet above the heart of the city centre.
St. Johns Beacon, one of Liverpool’s iconic landmarks, offers breathtaking panoramic views of the Wirral, North Wales, Lancashire and beyond. You also get an exclusive behind the scenes tour of the three radio stations: City Talk 105.9, Magic 1548 and Radio City 96.7.
Adults are priced at £6.25, students £5.25 and concessions £4.25 (children aged 15 or younger). Family tickets and group discounts are also available upon request.
As a whole, this is a fantastic tour enabling you to absorb spectacular scenery from Liverpool’s one and only iconic tower.

I can understand the complaints that lie behind the St John’s Beacon, theres the obvious UFO/​Airport control tower reference to make and maybe it’s because I’m a Londoner (without descending into song…) that I’m used to a BT tower shape sitting in the skyline.
But somehow the St John’s Beacon doesn’t dominate the Liverpool skyline, instead it compliments it adding to the other unusual aspects such as the huge Metropolitan Cathedral, The mobile phone shaped Echo arena, The Hilton, The Liver Building etc. Raising the question: is there even such thing as a conventional skyline for a city?
I haven’t been able to go round on the guided tour yet which apparently lasts for 90 minutes and typically costs £8.50. If the views are comparable to the excellent trip to the top of the Liverpool Cathederal then surely that would be worth bearing the ugliness and staid concrete support in the middle of the city’s skyline for the addition of a fully panormic view around the city.