On 14 June 1942, during Operation Harpoon, Liverpool suffered an air attack and had to undergo repairs and refitting at Rosyth, Scotland for the remainder of the war.

The ship carried a maximum of 2,075 long tons (2,108 t) of fuel oil which gave her a range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,110 km; 6,900 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph).

The Liverpool Woman's Service Bureau presented the cruiser with a Union flag and White Ensign, while the city's Corporation gave the crew "three pairs of candlesticks, a silver cup, and two bugles".

[16] Alerted to reports that German sailors in the United States had arranged transport to Germany, the British Government authorised the station's commander-in-chief to direct a warship to board Asama Maru and detain suspected passengers, provided the procedure did not occur within sight of the coast of Japan.

[16] Liverpool discharged a warning shot across Asama Maru's bows to compel the liner to halt, afterwards deploying 12 men to conduct the search.

[21] In April, Liverpool became the flagship of Rear-Admiral Arthur Murray's Red Sea Force, which was formed with the Australian cruiser HMAS Hobart.

[22] The Red Sea Force was intended to help execute naval strategy in the area by performing a variety of duties, such as patrols and blockade enforcement in the event of war with Italy.

[24] When ordered to the Mediterranean in June, Liverpool relinquished her status as flagship with the transfer of Admiral Murray to the New Zealand cruiser HMNZS Leander at Port Sudan.

[27] The ensuing action, carried out at a minimum range of about 14,000 yards (8.0 mi), resulted in the destruction of the Italian Espero[27] The two surviving destroyers reached Benghazi with their supplies.

[27][29] The Admiralty criticised the squadron's expenditure of some 5,000 6-inch (150 mm) rounds, which Admiral Andrew Cunningham, commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, attributed to its inexperience and his insistence on confronting the Italian warships before nightfall.

[32] Italian aircraft attacked Liverpool with bombs on 12 July while she was returning to Alexandria, Egypt, causing fatalities and wounding three, including the cruiser's commander.

The latter convoy came under substantial attack by Italian aircraft on the 29th; Liverpool was the only vessel hit when an unexploded bomb penetrated two decks,[34] killing a rating.

[36] When the Mediterranean Light Forces restructured in August, Liverpool was switched to the 3rd Cruiser Squadron, grouped with Gloucester and Kent under the command of Rear-Admiral Edward de Faye Renouf.

[clarification needed][37] On 28 September, as part of Operation MB.5, Liverpool and Gloucester proceeded to Malta, transporting reinforcements, airmen, and RAF provisions.

While Liverpool and other escorts were returning from the sortie on 14 October,[40] Italian torpedo-bombers attacked the cruiser, inflicting considerable damage to the forward section and causing fuel to be released from the aviation tank.

[43] According to the journal of Midshipman William Hayes, Liverpool, like nearby warships, had been forewarned of an imminent attack via radio direction finder (RDF), but the inexperienced rating on watch at his post did not report this to his superiors because of apparent confusion.

Once able to embark on a prolonged voyage, Liverpool steamed to the United States to have her bow reconstructed at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California.

[48] The conditions that Allied ships endured during the convoys proved extreme, with freezing weather, snowstorms, and frequent attacks by the Luftwaffe and Germany Navy.

She joined Convoy QP 10, comprising 16 merchant vessels and five destroyers, on 12 April 1942 as an escort on its journey from the Russian Kola Peninsula to Iceland.

[51] PQ 16 had considerable protection, including the light and heavy cruisers Nigeria, Kent, and Norfolk, and numerous destroyers and submarines, with distant cover provided by the Home Fleet.

They crippled Liverpool and sunk the Dutch freighter Tanimbar,[57] ultimately depriving the convoy of a close cruiser escort as Kenya and Charybdis were covering Force W's aircraft carriers when Italian ships attacked the surviving merchantmen and destroyers.

[58] The torpedo that impacted Liverpool's starboard side hit the engine room, partially flooding the cruiser and disabling her machinery and steering gear.

[61] The fatalities from the torpedoing had remained in the engine room and been affected by heat exposure, requiring the distribution of an additional tot of rum to the volunteer retrieval party.

[48] The refit upgraded Liverpool's radar equipment,[3] removed "X" turret and the aircraft catapult, and enlarged the cruiser's defensive armament (which included an increase to 16 Bofors 40 mm, in six twin and four single mounts).

Given a 21-gun salute by the cruiser, Farouk met Vice-Admiral Louis Mountbatten and the ambassador to Egypt and later expressed his "pleasure at the visit and at renewing my acquaintance with the Royal Navy.

"[66] In September 1951, Liverpool, as flagship of Admiral John Edelsten, became the first British warship to visit Yugoslavia post-war and was inspected by the country's leader Marshal Tito in the city of Split.

[68] Following the abrogation of the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty in October 1951, the Royal Navy dispatched vessels to Port Said after dock workers declared a strike protesting the British administration of the Suez Canal Zone.

The cruisers Gambia and Liverpool consecutively assumed responsibility for dock operations, supplying men to replace unavailable workers and guard against guerrilla attacks on facilities.

[69] In January, Egyptian media accused Liverpool of firing her guns into the port during an engagement with guerrillas, which the British military vehemently denied and attributed to misidentification.

However, the gradual rationalisation of the Royal Navy began in earnest in the 1950s under Duncan Sandys' 1957 Defence White Paper, and the reserve of at least 551 ships was abolished.