Asylum-themed ‘escape room’ shuts after online anger:
Gwynedd attraction branded insensitive and disrespectful to ex-hospital’s history
ANEW escape room attraction at a former workhouse and hospital in Gwynedd has had to shut after its “asylum” theme was described as “disrespectful” and “insensitive”.
PanIQ Rooms, which is based in Porthmadog, provides pop-up escape rooms in various locations in the area.
Its most recent escape room, which was called Madog’s Asylum, was temporarily set up in the now closed Bron y Garth hospital in Minffordd near Penrhyndeudraeth.
In recent years, escape rooms have become popular with groups of friends, families and co-workers, and involve a team of players discovering clues and solving puzzles in one or more rooms in a limited time.
But PanIQ Rooms had to close its Bron y Garth escape room earlier than expected after attracting controversy online, where some local people said the attraction was “disrespectful” and “insensitive” to the building’s history.
From the mid 1800s to the start of the 1900s, the two-storey building was the Llys Ednyfed workhouse. After 1930, the site was taken over by the Merionethshire Council and later joined the NHS as Bron y Garth hospital in 1948.
The hospital closed its doors in 2009 and, although the building had been left empty since, plans were announced in July to turn it into a luxury hotel.
PanIQ Rooms owner Charlotte Reffold used the site for the Madog’s Asylum escape room, which was the business’s first horror-themed escape room and the first in Porthmadog.
She said: “I am not the owner of Bron y Garth and it is not the location of my business. I never had plans to expand into that building. PanIQ Rooms is currently mail order until my permanent residence is ready.
“Madog’s Asylum is a fictional short horror story designed to make you want to escape the room. I picked the name Madog because of the location (Porthmadog).
“The location is irrelevant because the same theme is being used wherever the pop-up location may be.”
The escape room took place in an “insane asylum” setting, but some were unhappy with the theme, while others saw it as an opportunity to use the empty building.
Penrhyndeudraeth resident Ceri Parry said the escape room was “too close to home”.
She said: “I found it a bit disrespectful because of the building’s workhouse history. There was so much suffering there, and it housed people that were considered mentally ill and disabled.
“My grandmother, who still lives in the area, remembers the workhouse and she was quite upset to hear about the escape room at the site.
“I have nothing against the business and I fully understand that it had no intention of hurting or aggravating people. It’s just the choice of location and the name that have upset a few people here.”
In response, Ms Reffold said: “I am hurt that I have been forced to close, but until there is more understanding of what the business is about, I feel it is best to temporarily stop trading.
“I am a humble woman from Porthmadog trying out a new venture and hopefully prospering into a good business in the area that will have opportunities for future local employment.
“I do not want to intentionally cause offence to any locals as I would like to work alongside them in future endeavours, and have stepped back from trading temporarily until I have decided what my next step is.
“If you are offended, I apologise and if you do have any more questions please do not hesitate to contact me.”