Nuclear bunker near Uppingham to be auctioned as ‘Grand Designs’ home
An abandoned nuclear bunker being marketed as a ‘Grand Designs’ opportunity goes under the hammer later this month.
Opened in 1960 as a Cold War monitoring post, the property off Stockerston Road, near Uppingham is part of a 1.4 acre site that also houses a former reservoir.
The underground bunker was decommissioned in 1968 and, according to SDL Property Auctions, it is “a stunning opportunity for a Grand Design type property”.
The site has planning permission for “a one-off, large home with cathedral-type ceilings, [with a] large glass opening with far reaching views”.
Sales details say the nuclear bunker offers scope for further accommodation, such as being turned into an office or ‘man cave’, while outside there is “ample parking, garage space, landscaped garden, tennis courts etc.”.
The information continues: “Situated in a highly sought after location with stunning 360-degree views over the surrounding countryside” it is “half a mile from Uppingham town centre, which houses an array of amenities and highly regarded schooling”.
The freehold site has a guide price of more than £650,000 and will be auctioned at 9am on Thursday, April 24 by SDL, which is part of Eddisons property surveyors, agents and auctioneers.
More than 1,500 nuclear monitoring posts were staffed by the Royal Observer Corps during the height of the Cold War. They were constructed in the early 1960s, and although most closed later that decade, bunkers near Grantham and Holbeach remained open until 1991.
Many have now been demolished, including bunkers at Empingham, Billingborough, Bourne and Duddington. But evidence of the underground chambers can be found at Cold Overton, Quadring Eaudyke, Moulton Chapel, Wansford and Castle Bytham.
The Royal Observer Corps was established in 1925 for air defence, and in the late-1950s turned its attention to the possibility of nuclear attack. The Corps was tasked with reporting nuclear bursts and monitoring fall-out, and this is why underground monitoring posts were built throughout the UK.
The bunkers were built to a standard design, featuring ventilation shafts with louvred vents alongside an entrance shaft. The underground chambers were furnished with canvas chairs, a folding table, a cupboard and a pair of metal-framed bunk beds. Lighting was powered by a 12-volt battery.
Each had equipment for measuring radiation levels, a bomb power indicator, and a ground zero indicator to help calculate the direction and elevation of a nuclear explosion. They also had hand-operated sirens to signal a red warning - a rising and falling note meaning air or missile attack was imminent, a white warning - a steady note to indicate ‘all clear’, and a black warning - combining the siren with a maroon firing to indicate radiation falling.
By 1968 the threat of nuclear attack lessened and Royal Observer Corps numbers halved, accompanied by the closure of many of the bunkers.
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