Inside Devonport's secret Cold War bunker untouched for over 45 years

In a forgotten corner of Devonport Naval Base, sits a relic of a bygone era - a Cold War bunker that has been relatively untouched and unexplored for over 45 years.
With so little being known about the bunker, objects are being documented and preserved - with the opening revealing the very real threat of nuclear war a whole generation lived with.
Forces News has gone inside the bunker that has been closed off completely for almost a decade to find out more about its history.
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[@keiko909]

he opened up the conversation with lord of the rings lmfao!

[@TheSussexpillbox]

The MOD will obviously have files for this structure, either in TNA or their own database. Things do not just exist with no trace.

[@burnheretic3950]

There is a pretty solid amount of info that clarifies that MOD would not be viable today, and especially not as a deterrent. Due to submarines and other means, it would only take seconds rather than minutes for a warhead to be delivered. This would not allow a country to respond with their "iron dome" type systems. Only a "looking glass" type reaction would be most feasible. Unfortunate that it has come to this, and all the politicians seem to love it.

[@sampointau]

Hmm, from being in the State Emergency Services & Civil Defence from the late 70's, even though in Australia, it would appear to be a regional civil defence HQ. The paperwork, warning pamphlets, ops room chinagraph report sheets for casualties, building damage etc. are the same as what we had and out service/system was wholly based in the UK Civil Defence system except for some of our radiological detectors and dosimeter equipment which came from the US civil defence system. Even in Australia it was common for regional or district Civil Defence HQ's to be located in former WW2 defence establishments, I know of one that was in a fort dating from the 1800's that was in service until the 60's, another that is in the WW2 Coral Sea aircraft operations bunker and numerous others.

[@leeclift4666]

Ah janner land when l am down in Plymouth hearing the testing of the siren ever week still sends a chill through me

[@VanderlyndenJengold]

That bed at the end might need a matress topper.

[@williamsion3000]

SHOULD BE DOING THIS AGAIN!!

[@Tocsin-Bang]

Interesting to see a couple of copies of CD Handbook No 10 was not for the public it was for Civil Defence Corps personnel to use in training the public.

[@WizardOfCheese]

interesting stuff!

[@sarahlouise7163]

pre-decimalisation was 60s, not "early 70s", decimalisation was in 1971

[@21jlxi]

3:10 Obviously no work was ever done on a Friday!

[@roland8449]

Radiation symbol is upside down.

[@Glocky131]

Frank Williams has such an awesome moustache

[@noodlyappendage6729]

Looked like the bunker opened onto a railway.

[@cobbler40]

Bygone era ?

[@tomsoki5738]

The government will do anything to cut our military capabilities... we never stopped needing infrastructure like this and we will always need it, stop shutting them down and keep them in service, it's far more expensive to have to completely over haul or build a new one than it is to just maintain ones we already have.

[@Keyswiz71]

I was in the Royal Observer Corps and was stood down in 1991 with the final elements of the ROC being finally binned in 1995. All our monitoring posts, group headquarters, Nuclear Reporting Cells were scrapped to "save money" and it was never replaced so the current nuclear posturing from Russia is now shining cold hard light on that decision. As you rightly say it would be hugely expensive to stand us all back up, recruit and train personnel from scratch while replacing all the infrastructure that has been demolished. Ironically it cost less to run the ROC for a year than to operate just one Tornado jet for the same period!

[@RJM1011]

The problem is people now know where these are so you would have to find new sites if you want to build bunkers like this now. Yes this could be used for something but NOT what it was built for.

[@tomsoki5738]

@@RJM1011 If they were never declassified and abandoned no one would know they are there

[@RJM1011]

@@tomsoki5738 But they have been that's the problem ! Also if taxes went UP to pay to keep them you and others would say it's a waste of money to do so !

[@tomsoki5738]

@@RJM1011 No I wouldn't, defence should always be the no.1 priority of a nation, all else comes secondary, if the NHS budget has to be cut to keep us safe and the Russians and Chinese away, go for it.

[@NoalFarstrider]

This will be made into NEW bunkers.

[@chiselcheswick5673]

Please explain further.

[@cobbler40]

Lucky there is no threat of nuclear war now ? Or is there a reason this bunker is being opened ?

[@pepperroni6252]

I'll pretend it's for historical reasons and not to restore it for protection

[@Dutch_fellow]

There are new ones probably :)

[@jari2018]

@@pepperroni6252 same in sweden -they reopen bunkers to save them for history -i guess thats the reason ..really -They must inspect all availbe abandoned bunker in case , so its "historical in uk to not upset the public - they document tear out the old or keep the useful stuff keep it in case situation

[@dingerbell100]

@@Dutch_fellow There ABSOLUTELY fucken ain’t any mate…not to the extent there were in the 1960-1980 period. Absolutely zero investment in this. If the “balloon goes up” You & me are faaarked. The political elite @ Cabinet level & the very highest CoC of the Military will be secure & everything else … including the Faslane facility will be gone. Take that to the bank.

[@zen4men]

Considering that Devonport Dockyard would be one of the first targets in a nuclear exchange, the bunker was constructed in a very unwise place. My ancestors owned huge quarries in Plymouth, supplied 4.5 million tons of stone for Plymouth Breakwater from 1812-1841, and supplied cut stone for many of the finer buildings in the The Three Boroughs. ...... The Glory of Plymouth was it's cut limestone and granite buildings and infrastructure, much demolished by the Luftwaffe, and then by the council. ...... Just as well that Moscow did not add to the huge destruction already suffered.

[@MeM_UK]

Document it then refurbish it. I want an evil lair.

[@jackrklive4200]

good thing they didn't come across shelob or any orc's. XD

[@VanderlyndenJengold]

They might have and just edited them out?

[@mashbury]

I grew up within the blast zone of Devonport in the late 60,s ,70,s and early 80,s and everyone knew that we would have been some of the first to experience “instant sunshine” in the UK You got used to it . My dad helped maintain the Plymouth City Council bunker in one of the Palmerston Forts. All pointless .