Mysterious wartime tunnels sprawling under the heart of London are set to be transformed into a high-tech visitor attraction.
The City of London Corporation overseeing the Square Mile revealed plans to refurbish the Kingsway Exchange Tunnels into an ‘immersive visitor experience’ at a cost of £220,000,000.
You would be forgiven for not knowing the tunnels even existed – they were classified for 70 years under the Official Secrets Act.
Built as a shelter during World War Two, the tunnels stretched across 8,000sqm of prime subterranean real estate in High Holborn, the highest point in the City of London.
During the Cold War, they were used as a telephone exchange, according to the Londonist.
And now, City of London bosses have approved plans to turn the deep-level tunnels into a ‘seven-day-a-week’ cultural attraction.
Under these plans, 38-41 Furnival Street – just off Chancery Lane Tube station – will be combined into one building.
This will include the entrance to the ‘heritage experience’ tunnels and a space for changing exhibitions in bid to boost footfall for hospitality, retail and leisure in the central London spot.
However, the plans still need approval from Camden Borough Council as the tunnel network extends into the council’s area.
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Shravan Joshi, chairman of the City of London Corporation’s planning and transportation committee, said he is excited about the plans, adding he hopes officials in neighbouring Camden ‘feel the same way’.
Money for the mega project comes from The London Tunnels, a UK-based company funded by businessman Angus Murray which planned to buy the tunnels from BT Group, Architects’ Journal reports.
London Tunnels is expected to invest around £140,000,000 into the restoration and preservation work, plus £80,000,000 for installing the immersive technology, the outlet says.
Inside the Cold War-era Kingsway Tunnels
The tunnels were used by the predecessor of M16, the UK Special Operations Executive which inspired the ‘Q Branch’ in James Bond novels, according to Architects’ Journal.
During its time as the Cold War telephone exchange, the tunnels had London’s deepest bar which served staff operating the famous hotline between Moscow and Washington.
The bar also featured a restaurant with fake windows, which the owners are planning to restore.
Several artefacts that were left in the tunnels will also be restored and revealed to the public, including the telephone dials.
The initial design for the tunnels was revealed last year by WilkinsonEyere, with modern features including curved floor-to-ceiling screens, mood lighting in the bar area and a World War Two walk-through exhibition with hanging planes.
The tunnels are 131ft (40m) underground. In comparison, the deepest Tube platform on the Jubilee Line at Westminster sits at 105ft (32m).
City of London Corporation chairman Shravan Joshi added: ‘At the City of London, we are delivering a thriving, sustainable Square Mile, through a combination of business growth and celebration of our local heritage.
‘The new and exciting heritage, arts and culture activity that this scheme has the potential to deliver, will enliven the local streets and venues.
‘As we work to transform the Square Mile into a seven-day-a-week destination, developments like the one proposed for the Kingsway Tunnel site will become global attractions for a variety of visitors, which are projected to rise substantially.’
Wartime shelters in London
The Underground, which opened in the late 19th century, offered protection to Londoners during the Nazi German Blitz which hit the capital hardest.
The government asked London Transport to build ten deep-level shelters for 8,000 civilians.
To make waiting out a fierce Blitz a bit more comfortable, each shelter had eight canteens serving sausage rolls, meat pies, cakes and hot drinks, which were a luxury during rationing, London Transport Museum said.
A large network used for communications, civil and military purposes is known to exist under London alongside the Tube bunkers.
But no one has admitted how many bunkers, shelters and tunnels there are exactly and if they are used to this day.
The most famous bunker is Pindar, created by the Ministry of Defence at a cost of £126,300,000.
It opened in 1992 to protect against pretty much any kind of a hostile attack or sabotage, with capacity for up to 400 personnel.
Pindar can sustain bombing, sabotage, biological and chemical attacks, flooding, electromagnetic pulse attacks, effects of blasts, radiation and all but a very direct nuclear weapon.
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