C-Wing, 2026

A series documenting abandoned prison cells in the Women’s Penitentiary at Lancaster Castle.

The last major extension to Lancaster Castle was the Female Penitentiary built in 1821. Designed by Joseph Gandy it drew heavily on Jeremy Bentham’s ‘panopticon’ concept for the labour-saving supervision of prisoners. The panopticon is semi-circular and contains five tiers of cells, each with a window. These cells lead off curved internal galleries and are visible across an open space from the central control room.