Shepton Mallet Prison Guided Tour: Explore Historic Buildings and Infamous Residents

Embark on a guided tour of Shepton Mallet Prison, delving into its historic buildings and infamous residents. Experience the hidden world of capital punishment and the secrets behind locked doors.

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Shepton Mallet Prison - Explore the paths once tread by inmates over the past four centuries. Uncover the secrets behind the towering walls and secured gates. Delve into the concealed realm of capital punishment and witness the very sites where executions were carried out.
    Shepton Mallet Prison offers guided tours led by former prison officers who…
What's Included
  • Admission to Shepton Mallet Prison
Additional Information

Experience the history of the last 400 years by tracing the path of past inmates. Uncover the mysteries that lie behind the towering walls and sealed entrances. Delve into the concealed universe of death sentence and witness the exact spot where lives were ended.
Shepton Mallet Prison offers informative tours led by former correctional officers who were…

Location
Shepton Mallet Prison
Frithfield Lane
To meet for this tour, please enter the visitor centre 15 minutes before your tour time
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(1712 Ratings)
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1 star
Ianlw4280kn
Apr 16, 2026
Family guided tour - Great visit and Jeremy was an excellent tour guide. Would thoroughly recommend this experience, especially with the guided tour . Dog friendly too.
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Goplaces44784878311
Apr 15, 2026
Great tour - Simon the tour guide was fantastic. Not only full of information on the history of the prison, but also of individuals that had had a connection to the prison. Would highly recommend it. Quick tip - wear warm clothes
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Stu_bath
Apr 12, 2026
Great experience. - We thoroughly enjoyed the tour. Esther was a great tour guide, humorous, informative and encouraged the party (there were six in our group) to share their stories too. Free time to wander after the tour and further explore this fascinating building.
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Ksb221
Apr 9, 2026
Conducted tour of Shepton Mallett prison - We were a family group of four and really enjoyed our tour with Jeremy. He was a credit to the organisation, giving a clear history of the prison and description of the conditions there and how they had changed through its life. The tour lasted 90 minutes which seemed to pass in a flash, with Jeremy answering our questions and relating numerous anecdotes from the life of the prison. Thank you very much.
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Kermie123
Apr 4, 2026
Fascinating with lots of history. - A fascinating visit-so much history. We opted for a guided tour and would highly recommend. Esther, our tour guide, was brilliant. Really engaging and informative. Overall a great experience with extremely friendly and helpful staff from the moment you arrive. Thank you and well done.
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Steve18022018
Apr 1, 2026
Great tour….one of the highlights of our trip to Somerset. - Excellent tour. Jeremy our tour guide was great - funny and knowledgeable. Time flew by. Would recommend.
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Suepw9984um
Mar 31, 2026
Fantastic day out. - Fantastic experience, so much knowledge given out by the tour guide that we would otherwise not have known as we walked around. All the staff were friendly and helped you with anything, including having our photos taken. A brilliant day out, but I did wonder if some of the children present may have been a tad too young to listen to some of the more gory details ? sure it said somewhere that you had to be a certain age.
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Jennyc34
Mar 24, 2026
Excellent Tour of Prison - We had a booked tour with Jason, and so glad we did the booked tour. Jason was very informative about all aspects of the prison. Happy to answer any questions we had. He definitely made the visit more interesting. Plus we had time to do our own thing at the end of the tour and revisit anywhere again.
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Q7852apmarkd
Mar 16, 2026
Fascinating place excellent tour - Jeremy was a terrific tour guide. Probably done a thousand or more tours. But his enthusiasm, knowledge and warm personality shone through. It was clear he very much loved his job rather than going through the motions. The prison unlike Bodmin was just how it was. Fascinating. I wandered randomly into cell 15 and later read about it's awful inmate. Brilliant tales about the Kray twins and the worlds worst prison escapist drinking in the nearest pub frequented by prison guards after their shift. Particularly enjoyed the paranormal tales as it's something I've been into for nearly 50 years so a ghost tour has to be next working my way up to the overnight. All the staff were incredibly friendly and I enjoyed chatting with them after the tour. And I thoroughly recommend From the Inside a book found in the gift shop for an in depth insight into the prison.
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Donnaty248vf
Apr 10, 2026
More time needed - It was very interesting and the guide was good but yes there is a but I think that we should have been allowed extra time to just have a look around a bit more on our own!! It seemed rushed…. We were with a group of about 25 people and it was annoying when we were rushed from one part to another. We didn’t even have enough time to read the signs of who was who and what they were inside for. Would of liked to of stayed for an extra had hr to actually feel the atmosphere
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From $34
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).