NUclear Bunker

[snorky]

Seeing as were all local history enthuisisats now

Its not East Dulwich, buit who wants to know about the council Nuclear Bunker in peckham ?

[James]

I do!

[mockney piers]

Have you been watching Only Fools and Horses on UK Gold again Snorky?

"Safe as 'aahses"

[SimonM]

Isn't there supposed to be one on Dulwich Golf Course too? (allegedly one reaon why That Woman bought one of them Barratt houses near the College...)

[snorky]

Do you want to see steamy unedited pix and hot raw descriptions of its interior ?

[snorky]

SimonM Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Isn't there supposed to be one on Dulwich Golf

> Course too? (allegedly one reaon why That Woman

> bought one of them Barratt houses near the

> College...)

The one at the bottom of the rye ?

its a reservoir - very interesting though

[snorky]

mockney piers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Have you been watching Only Fools and Horses on UK

> Gold again Snorky?

>

> "Safe as 'aahses"

Filmed iN bristol by all accounts

[snorky]

Here we go#

Its the small square bit of waste land opposite the Council offices andf the little park on peckham high street.The covered hole in the ground is where its at.

until recently you could "get in" with a bit of persistance and sturdy shoes, ut has since been (shoddily ) resealed.

[*Bob*]

It kinda reminds me of my secondary school.

[Huguenot]

That's great stuff Snorks - it looks like the set for 'Threads'

[snorky]

Huguenot Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> That's great stuff Snorks - it looks like the set

> for 'Threads'

True - tis a snapshot of the "threads" era - even down to the Phones

[Keef]

snorky Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

> Filmed iN bristol by all accounts

Tis true, you can see "Nelson Mandela House" from Ashton Gate (Bristol City FC's ground).

[redrouge]

There's something like a war bunker in my one my neighbour's gardens - I live on LL, top end near the library and theres this huge concrete bunker thing in their garden. And apparantly there is a ladder and it goes down to a tunnell! Tunnels under Lordship Lane... what next?!

[Tom]

Yeah - a mate of mine lives on St Aidans and has one too.

[Townleygreen]

The thing in the Dulwich golf course was a Royal Observer Corps place. Basically it was a partly buried trench-type thing which would have been used to observe and report the location of the various nuclear explosions in the central London area had World War 3 happened. The views from the higher parts of the golf course (including the club house) across London are fantastic. This is what I was told by an alleged expert a while ago. Ghastly thought. Reminds me of my childhood during the Cuban missile crisis. We wondered what we would do when we got the 4 minute warning of incoming Soviet missiles. What would you do in your last 4 minutes on earth?

[dulwichmum]

Dear Townleygreen,

What a terrible thought! I remember being pre-occupied by that thought as a teenager in the 80's. I couldn't bear to go back to that. Every day when my husband goes to work I hope to God there are is no more terrorism in London, losing a parent can destroy the lives of those left behind. Maybe I am being superficial here (as usual), but if this stuff is going to happen, I am not going to waste the time we have in lovely Dulwich worrying about it.

DM

[Townleygreen]

No I absolutely agree, no point worrying about stuff like that. You wouldn't be able to function if you did.

[panda boy]

Funny you should mention that Townleygreen.

When i was at college, (a while ago now,) i made a short film called 'your last 3 minutes', about exactly that subject.

I went around the streets of York with a camera and interviewed people about what they'd do.

(Then cut the footage to a soundtrack etc etc...)

OK a tad morbid but i recieved some interesting responses...

[Ant]

Worry achieves nothing - even when what you were worrying about comes to pass. It just ruins what time you have.

[i*Rate]

SimonM,

For your benefit and other local historians (and apologies to everyone else for restarting this thread after so long) I took part in a CND'Bunkers Are Bonkers' peaceful protest over this REAL nuclear bunker some time in the 1980s - can't remember exact year at the moment. The bunker was (or is still) deep underground and equipped with radio and provisions, situated in front of the golf course club house with an air vent sticking out of a grass mound. At the time Maggie Thatcher had bought, or been given, one of the brand new Barratt houses on the new estate off the south circular. A female protester broke into the bunker and had to be arrested and forcibly removed by the police, meanwhile my fellow protesters and I marched across the golf course carrying our banners. We were escorted by a police helicopter and several mounted police from the Lordship Lane Police Station, which had stables at the time. Some voices were raise but no one was injured and I do hope that it contributed to World Peace.

At the time we were all worried about the start of a nuclear war that would destroy us all (apart from the people in the bunkers), but what a long way we have now come to a very different world. Now, peace and light reigns everywhere, conflict seems a thing of the past and all around the world, people enjoying a secure, simple happy lifestyle.

HA,HA,HA.

[computedshorty]

This was my Home.

Are the paths useable?

I am Arlene a Freelance Reporter, who was looking for a news item to offer the South London Press.

I was driving very carefully through the lying snow yesterday, along Lordship Lane heading for the Library at the Barry Road junction. I noticed a man lying on the pavement who must have slipped on the compact snow that was now solid ice, I stopped the car and made my way gingerly over to him, he turned out to be quite elderly, and at least twice my weight.

I said hello can I help you to your feet? Oh thank you he replied. Between the pair of us we did manage to get him to his feet, he held onto a garden wall for support, he said can you reach my walking frame it has slipped into the road. I bent to retrieve it and slipped and fell on my right arm, the pain appeared to be my forefinger that must be because it protrudes the longer, I was now the casualty, The man said can I look, he examined each finger going to the one that hurt last, any sharp pain as you move it? No!

It looks like you have a Sprain, not serious but very painful, you wont want to drive like that will you? Do you want to go to casualty? NO! He said I live just here we can put some ice on it to ease it a bit. That would be kind thank you.

He led the way down the side of the house to his front door, he took some time fiddling with his keys as he must be very cold by now. We both entered his hallway, he closed the door, it looked like any other hallway with the doors to rooms going off in the directions that you would expect to see, but he pressed a button in lift selection control, I assumed he lived on an upper floor, but the motion when stopping was that of descending. The door opened to reveal a very long hallway to a modern flat decorated to the latest design and furnished with the items of comfort and labour saving kitchen. He said sit down I?ll get some ice, he brought the ice in a napkin, placed a towel on the table, put your arm there you don't want to get your coat wet, wrapped the napkin with the ice around my hand. Would you like a drink to warm you up? You can have a Whiskey, Tea or Coffee. Can I have a cup of tea please. Do you want an Aspirin? The cold ice was making the pain less, but melted, he bound my finger with a crepe bandage. You have a grand view from the front of the house, is that from a second floor, No it is from the Close Circuit Television camera on the front of the house, that is not a window it?s a monitor.

This is my computer room, most of the things are interconnected, I don't use a monitor I use a television with all the things connected I can touch this and see out side front back or even in all the interior rooms look here you are. I can see any T.V station by pushing this, go to any website I have a link with or interchange with any of those other computers or printers, that one is direct from my digital Camera to a printer, or disc. This one is from my mobile phone, there ere lots of Albums there I often delete the unused ones to free up space. I remarked on the view from the kitchen window, the snow that had not been disturbed in the garden except by the birds, he looked at me for a while before answering. ?That view is not out of the window it is deflected by a periscope positioned thirty feet above us?. What do you mean I asked. I said I had a feeling that we had not gone to an upper floor. If you have time I will explain it to you.

In the early part of the second world war, a bomb dropped just here the crater exposed the main sewer that serves these houses, it is brick built and a man can walk along it to keep it clean. It came under the Metropolitan Water Board, the Ministry of Defence were looking out to build a secret location to house the local combined Civil Services, they looked at the position of this site, there were two Air Raid Wardens living within a space five houses, there was always lots of comings and goings of other Wardens , Auxiliary Firemen, Police, Rescue Services, calling to arrange matters, so any extra people might not thought to be of any concern.

The entrance in lordship Lane was not big enough or far too obvious that something was happening there, to the rear was

Landcroft Road, here the row of about eight houses had been damaged beyond repair so were demolished, making a way into the site here the work was done out of sight of the public, the crater was dug out larger to accommodate an underground Control Centre. My father was approached to have air ventilation ducting from the Centre up through the cellar and up the inside of the chimney stack, to disperse the foul air, the other chimney stack some twenty feet away would draw in the clean air. A transfer arrangement was fitted should any resident light a fire along side the intake duct, none of this could be seen from outside.

There was a coincidence that I was employed as an apprentice carpenter with the building company that did the building, as far as the public were concerned it was underground Pumping Station, nobody got onto the site after work as in those days all sites had a night watchman. There was after levelling the ground another entrance from Landcroft Road. An Emergency Water Supply Tank was brick build over the place where the houses had been, but the water level was never very much, in case it got bombed and flooded the Centre. The Centre was self sufficient and was never exposed, the Electricity was supplied as if it was a Water Board Premises, the water the same and sewage, so no bills ever requested for payment. It never got planning permission as it was so secret, it is not on the Land Registry files. At the end of the war it got forgotten about or nobody would bring it to the notice of the authorities concerned. The Water Tank got demolished and new just two story post war house built in Landcroft Road and that entrance sealed up. The years have gone by and all those who used it or knew of it have now died, except myself. I sold the house but had to retain the ground to have access still, it is still in perfect condition no damp as the air circulates daily and the heating by electricity is thermostatically activated. So there you have it!

Thank you so much for your help, I must be getting on my way. My finger feels so much better now.

I am glad I could help you as you had already helped me. Let me show you to the gate. We entered the lift walked down the path to the pavement, Good bye and thanks again. He was gone! I turned to go and down I went again.

I got up no pain now, my finger did not hurt at all, that?s strange where is the bandage? Not here but I have not moved from this spot yet. I got into my car I had started my Dictaphone in motion as I am always anticipating getting a story, looked the reading of recorded seconds but it had not recorded I tried rewind but nothing, I had no story, a traffic warden was standing in front of the car about to write a ticket, so I quickly drove off, I stopped at the chemist up the road to buy some tablets for my headache, I said to the assistant I have just been talking to the old white haired man with the Zimmer frame, do you know his name I forgot to ask? Sorry I don't know anybody like that, I thought that I would go back and ask him, but could not pick out what house it was, I tried walking along looking for his Zimmer marks in the snow, but there were none there. I did knock on one house and asked of him but they said they had never seen him. perhaps it was just a dream, so I drove around the back into Landcrort Road to return home to my surprise there was in fact a row of post war houses as described. But nothing to substantiate what I had been told.

[randombloke]

Just a thought. If you are playing a round of golf at Dulwich and your ball goes into this bunker, I bet it will take you more than a sand wedge to get out...wonder if there's a local rule on the back of the scorecard? If your ball is lost in the nuclear bunker you have four minutes to find it, not the usual five..

[Earl Aelfheah]

Don't want to be a pedant, but to clarify, it's in Camberwell and not on Peckham High Street.

norky Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Here we go#

>

> Its the small square bit of waste land opposite

> the Council offices andf the little park on

> peckham high street.The covered hole in the ground

> is where its at.

>

> until recently you could "get in" with a bit of

> persistance and sturdy shoes, ut has since been

> (shoddily ) resealed.

[steveo]

computedshorty. Can you explain? Is this a story you have read in the SLP?

[computedshorty]

steveo.

I have taken this from my Book of Memoirs

2

?

One day the air raid siren sounded. I ran down the garden to light the lamp in the Andersen shelter and returned to the house to carry one of the baby twins to the shelter, my mother bringing the other with her, With planes overhead, Mum said to get under the table as there was no time to get down the garden to the shelter. The table was very large for the ten of us that sat round it for our meals. We could hear the bombs falling, then a tremendous explosion. Everything seemed to go orange , then black, then silent, We couldn't breathe. Black soot and plaster from the ceiling choked us. We tried to get out from under the table. The complete window frame, dresser, and the cast iron kitchen range was keeping us in. We worked our way out from under the table. A hole was where the window had been, glass was sticking in the facing wall, all the crockery was smashed when the dresser fell, the kitchen range was on its front with bricks from the chimney stack above had fallen down inside, in its place in the hearth. We were black with dust and soot.

?

I looked down the garden through the opening, The shelter where we would have been, was now covered with clay three times as high. The two large conker trees were leafless, there was now a space beyond the shelter, towards Lancroft Road where there had been eleven houses, now smoked a gaping crater.