Glorious Gwen Chapel, Wales

Glorious Gwen Chapel was a former Welsh Methodist Chapel in a small coastal North Wales town. The chapel was built in 1845, looking much like many other chapels from the outside with a simple Angelsey grey limestone dressing on the facade. The chapel was enlarged and re-built in 1866, with further modifications and rebuilding in 1878 and 1898.

The chapel closed down in 1996, and lay derelict for over 20 years. Planning permission was granted in 2017 to convert the chapel. Renovation work started in the summer of 2017, with the removal of pews. The building has not been converted into 9 high-end apartments. We visited the chapel prior to the renovation, at the beginning of 2017.

At the time of our visit, the inside of the chapel was beautifully preserved despite over 20 years of abandonment. Damp had started to set in, bubbling paint on the walls. The ceiling was starting to suffer water damage and minor collapse as the old slate roof began to leak. The most striking feature of Gwen Chapel is the large and ornate ceiling which is oddly reminiscent of a turtle shell. The large circular structure features wooden panelling, with circular plaster mouldings. The design is very aesthetic, consisting of concentric circles in browns and shades of green.

The pipe organ still stands above the pulpit, sadly missing a few pipes from one side and some of the wood panelling. A cloth with golden cross embroidery hangs off the pulpit, and a Welsh bible sits upon the lectern. All the pews were still intact when we visited, in the traditional horseshoe shape with a ground floor and mezzanine floor of seating.

One would hope that the beautiful ceiling has been retained in the apartments and that the renovation inside preserves at least some of the original chapel features.