Underground Telephone Exchange 'Guardian' Manchester(True Story)

[@neonskyline1]

This is the kind of stuff we all should be watching now, not that tv garbage they are putting out now, people like Martin are much better to watch and listen to. Manchester is quite an interesting place

[@jamessones4044]

When I visit my Nan and she’s got the bbc on It makes me realise,they aren’t showing her anything!! And what they do is waffle.

[@ThatMicro43Guy]

As someone who used to work down a R3 bunker (underground RADAR bunker) I’m always fascinated by people’s preconceptions and misconceptions about them. Interesting to see a reasonably sensible description of a Cold War complex.

[@MartinZero]

Thanks. Think is I can only go of what I deem to be facts

[@GMMilambar]

I've been researching Guardian for a long while. If I may add a bit of a narative to what you've already said. The Ardwick Exit (they were originally designed as emergency exits), originally was identical to Salford. However some people managed to penetrate Guardian via Ardwick, so the entrance was rebuilt to make it more secure. The entrance from Dial house is via a shaft in the basement of Dial house. Not from that works hatch outside. The unit on Back George Street is not the main entrance. Its the goods entrance. Where they took the telecoms equipment in and out via a massive goods elevator capped by a huge steel and concrete slab. The main entrance (the ones the workers used), was inside the York House telephone exchange. Behind a guards desk, and a locked door, was a series of steps that took the workers down, under the road, to a closed off basement below Rutherford house, where the main elevator down into Guardian was. There was no direct access to this elevator from Rutherford House itself, designed that way to confuse people. This entrance was backfilled and sealed off when York House was sold to its current owners. It is unknown if access from within Rutherford House was opened up. I suspect so, but not with certainty. There is a rumoured but unconfirmed entry shaft from the basement of Picadilly Plaza. The Ardwick site is also interesting because that was once the surface works where they brought out all the rock and spoil they dug out, then backfilled the massive surface portal at that location. The site is still in semi-active use, albeit not as a telephone exchange anymore, but as a way for BT to lay cables without digging up the city. The only known access point these days, is in the basement of Dial House. There may be others, but thats the only one I know to be still in use.

[@MartinZero]

Thanks for the info

[@immortalclass]

The television drama from the 1980s Threads, gives an idea how Guardian may have been used, in the ultimate eventuality. I'm not ashamed to say, that film scares the willies out of me!

[@MartinZero]

Hello, Ive never seen that programme is it on KZbin ?

[@immortalclass]

I think it was at one point. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threads

[@jordanrowland6269]

Threads is coming out on Blu ray on 17th December. One to watch with the family on Xmas day seeing as there’s no Doctor Who this year!

[@MartinZero]

@@jordanrowland6269 Oh No Doctor !!! Ok remind me 👍

[@MrEdtangent]

Threads is truly terrifying but a must watch

[@wes11bravo]

Well done, Martin! Very engaging and obviously well researched. I'm a splicing technician for a huge telco and I never miss an opportunity to lurk around central offices, all of which were built to withstand nuclear attack. I live and work in Pittsburgh, which was a prime target during the Cold War. 98% of the fiber trunk lines and large copper cables (most of which have paper insulation of the conductors and lead sheathing!!) are underground. No tunnels like Manchester though. Cheers + all the best from Pittsburgh USA!

[@MartinZero]

Wes thanks very much for commenting. Great that you found my videos. I'd love to see those buildings you work in, blast proof doors and superstructure, fascinating stuff. Thanks again and best wishes to you in Pittsburgh 👍

[@jibicusmaximus4827]

was that pun intentional? lol.

[@SerafinTirado471]

From across the pond The Bronx you are doing a great job you got me exploring my own community. There was an old analog telephone building down the block from me that's no longer there. Now you got me wondering if there was tunnel under it branching out. We went through our cold war Boogeyman. I have found lots of abandon fallout in The Bronx in the 70s. Most of them being filled in by now. I did witness a new telecommunication tunnel being built here in the Bronx under one of the river in the early 2000s. The entrance looks similar to what you found. You'll walk by it and never know what it is. Cheer or Yo, that bad man, as we say here in Da Bronx. Bad is good in the street here.

[@nomdeplume798]

We have friends who live in Throgg's Neck. The wife is Manchester born and bred.

[@SerafinTirado471]

@@nomdeplume798 born-and-bred in Throgs Neck. Swinton Avenue

[@green1sounds]

You were right about the other access tunnel it might not look well protected but looks are very deceiving. A few years ago I was working next to the entrance when the range rover pulled up with very serious people. Very important exchange even today.

[@MartinZero]

The whole place is fascinating

[@geoffreyboyling615]

When our class ended our school days in 1968, a friend got a job as an engineer for GPO Telephones, and spent some time at Guardian, and we kept in touch for a while He said that in an emergency they could close down or isolate most domestic telephone lines, and concentrate on those for essential services He also said that they had a small TV & Radio studio. Again in an emergency if normal broadcasting was disabled they could still broadcast basic information He added that the tunnels were very handy for avoiding the crowds on Market Street if he wanted to nip out for shopping in his dinner time There was also a telephone line to the USA, and for a while part of his job each morning was to contact a similar operator in America to check that the connection was still functioning and adjust the volume, static, clarity, and so on. They would talk about their girlfriends, the latest pop music, and anything else that was of interest to a young man, for an hour or two, as they needed the speech while they made any adjustments and corrections

[@MartinZero]

That’s great Geoffrey never knew about the studio 👍

[@Stiffd1]

Yep. Same in Liverpool. In the event of a nuclear attack, all call boxes are cut. This was often used as anti-goverment rhetoric by RedWedge in early 1980s to incite anger and bill posted in the boxes throughout the city.

[@st1nk1n]

That supports my guess that much of the purpose (and funding) was to keep the hot line open to the USA.

[@briangoulden6687]

@@st1nk1n The hot-line was not a voice connection but a number of teleprinter circuits. A voice circuit could be activated but it was routed through the then defence telecommunications network.

[@nomdeplume798]

In the mid '70s I was going out with a girl who's mother played in a Bridge School. One of the members of the club was a chap who was a senior engineer with BT, or Post Office Telephones as I think it was called. He took me down there, from, l think, around New York Street. I can't remember much about it except how unremarkable it was. We didn't go far. The analogue 'phone system you mentioned would have been a Strauger (sp?) system. The electro-mechanical nature of that system is why the dial on your phone went back so slowly to the start after you dialled.

[@ryansleftboot]

My dad used to work on these tunnels in the eighties and come home and tell stories of an underground Manchester. Blew my mind. Now i know they exist. Ta mate!

[@MartinZero]

Hi Ryan, thanks mate. Yeah blew my mind when I learned about them to 👍

[@Mike-yt7py]

I went down them a few times with my dad in the 90s and he was working weekends. Never really appreciated them at the time being under 10 but looking looking back I wish I'd took it in a bit more

[@bobbooth4637]

As a former engineer I have walked every inch from Ardwick to Dial House and then on to the Crescent, it's a fantastic experience. And just to confirm the blast doors are enormous !!. Spent months working down there and enjoyed every minute and of it. In the main sections of the exchange you could drive double decker buses quite easily which shows the scale of how big they are. There are two giant generators still down there but most of the exchange equipment has well gone. The fire caused major damage and took a long time to repair, engineers were working around the clock in shifts to sort it out. it is truly a fascinating place .

[@MartinZero]

Thanks Bob, id love to see it

[@zippy3711]

These Manchester UK videos are great. Watching them makes me want to visit Manchester. We have a Manchester here in New England, but it's not half as old or interesting.

[@steve1053able]

The entrance to the shaft you was looking for in Salford, is actually in the basement of Dial house and can also gained through two manholes outside the building into the basement. I have been in it, when I Was a contractor on the building of Dial house in the seventies.It was said at the time, the exchange equipment on each floor cost more than it did to construct the entire entire building.

[@MartinZero]

Wow , one of the few people that have been down there

[@chrisbishop1534]

The mechanicle parts in those exchanges were called "selectors".The one connected to your phone was called a "uni selector" that had some electro mechanicle arms with contacts arranged in a semi circle .When you put your finger in "4" and dialled that digit it would send 4 pulses to the selector and move it to the forth contact and so on as you dialled the number.you can imagine the racket going on in a large exchange.I used to build those exchanges in the late sixties.

[@hairyairey]

They were still in use in the 80s - went into the exchange at Withdean in Brighton it was so noisy!

[@regentcourtentwistle]

Guardian as an exchange was still in use well into the 1980’s. post office telephones and then BT used it as a private network . As telephone operators we used it to connect to other exchange operator’s around the country.it was particularly useful when the public network was congested. You could call another operator in the place you need to call, this would bypass the public network and the remote operator would connect you to the local number. There was another exchange called Manchester pioneer which I believe was adjacent to guardian

[@coyote5735]

There is a small nuclear bunker under Beaconsfield Registry office right at the back of the building, not used for yrs, I think it's used to store old docs I got a glimpse of it about 5yrs ago but it was intended for the local judge and some council officials. There must be hundreds of these bunkers dotted around the country. I was working in a bunker in Oxford back in the '90s to do with the ROC I was told it was a hub to collect blast and fallout data from remote observer stations. It was partially above ground it had been recently upgraded all-new HVAC plant, generator etc it was shut down shortly afterwards. Gone now, flats on the site for a Uni if my memory serves me right. An anecdotal story I worked with a bloke a good few yrs ago and he was on a military base lifting manhole covers looking for something and he lifted one cover to see a two-lane road with white lines down the middle he quickly put the lid back and fecked off... made me laugh because from his reaction it was something he wasn't supposed to see.

[@jean60m]

I worked as an operator at Manchester Peterloo telephone exchange in the early 60's. My Dad worked in the tunnels beneath the exchange in the 50's and 60's

[@chelseaboy1066]

I was working there from 2004 onwards. I was there for the fire which was bad. Loved every minute working there.

[@ontheflyby270]

The tunnel entrances in Salford and Ardwick were changed at some point. When I walked to see them about 25+ years back, they were both rather scruffy looking small brick buildings with louvred vents and doors. Both a similar size to the one now in Salford. You could hear the air handling plants moving air though them. Both of these were demolished and the entrances that you see more were formed. I think there are some pics of the original entrances online still. I also think this was in response to the fact that someone from Salford broke in to the Salford tunnel one night. I can't remember the time frame. My understanding is that the entrance to the tunnels from within the Back George Street building is a horizontal 16ton slab that retracts. This was to be used for the purpose of sealing the entrance against bombs. As you said it was not fit for purpose by the time construction was complete. I was also lead to believe that the main entrance to this building was from the other side. If you go to the other side, from memory, there used to be a black garage type split opening door which was bricked over some years back..

[@MartinZero]

I would love to go in there

[@incandescentwithrage]

Should have chucked a high vis on and climbed down one of the shafts. No one questions a vest

[@coyote5735]

Yeah if you look the part and are confident you can walk past anyone.

[@gmr1241]

@@coyote5735 My late father taught me that decades ago. It got me a long way. No, nothing illegal!

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Indeed. I have several high viz vests from various utility companies (all aquired legally!) and hard hats for same. Lets me take pictures of infrastructure without getting the cops called! Although I did have one lady scream at me when I was wearing an Electricity jacket that the power company were all crooks and her prepayment meter stole money from her! LOL

[@Worldtree11]

Given a thermonuclear attack on Manchester in the 50's, with the megaton bombs the Soviets had, 150 - 200 feet underground would not be enough. The crater would be deeper, the electromagnetic pulse would fry any electronics and even if not, the pressure wave of several mega pascals would have probably crushed everything. Even if the infrastructure survived, doubtful if people would. Cool video Martin!

[@MartinZero]

Thanks very much

[@keithshephard6802]

Incredible ,Your video makes me wonder just how many more places like this exist throughout GB unknown to us. Another great video, Thanks Martin, really interesting stuff.

[@MartinZero]

Thanks Keith

[@TheBenchPressMan]

Man I love your content, bloody fascinating and very detailed!

[@Mosfet510]

It's amazing at what people walk by everyday and have no idea. Interesting video.

[@ffrancrogowski2192]

I never realised that there was such a series of tunnels under Manchester like these, Martin. You did well to find the other entrances at Salford and Ardwick, apart from the main one in the city centre. There must have been masses of hard sandstone rock excavated and then taken away to form these, and all on the quiet too. Great video, and many thanks.

[@johnclarke2997]

In the 1990's I worked for the BBC and they had a emergency plan which keep broadcasting for pre and post WW3 and what would have been the loss of many broadcast studio facilties in the big cities. The BBC had a small studio in each regional operation centre used by the government also had broadcast studios which would pass on local information to the public. All the broadcast facilties had generators with fuel tanks to keep them running for several weeks and all the main facilties would have been manned, so each site had beds, food store, bathroom and a kitchen. From what I can remember the plan was to split the BBC in to regions, so that local information can be provided/pass on to the public quickly and that meant the BBC would split its transmitter network so that could run this regional plan. The sound programme links between the studio's and transmitters would have used BT facilties such as Guardian and if facilties such as Guardian were off line for some reason, the BBC transmitters had the abilty to receive other transmitters in the BBC's network and re-transmit that signal onwards (Called RBS - Rebroadcast Standby in the BBC). My memory is poor here, but at certain times of the day the BBC would do a national programme which would be done from a BBC facility near Evesham which was also the location of the BBC's engineer training offices called Wood Norton Hall.

[@MartinZero]

Interesting stuff John. All this stuff is very fascinating. I will pass this on to my friend Lewis he will love this

[@Gaz258th]

@@MartinZero Wood Norton Hall has it's own protected bunker too

[@hairyairey]

And absolutely no plan for an EM pulse that takes out all telecommunications!

[@st1nk1n]

The BBC had a studio in each of the Regional Seats of Government - ex RAF nuclear bunkers that were repurposed to control/inform the population after an attack.

[@Gaz258th]

@@st1nk1n yeah the one in drakelow was amazing when it first closed but quickly rotted away

[@PurityVendetta]

Another really interesting video Martin, thanks. It incredible to find out about these things I must have walked above many times when I've worked in Manchester. I used to go out exploring Manchester and Stockport in my afternoon breaks as I worked for the Library Theatre Company in the basement of the Central Library. Back then it was before a lot of the recent redevelopment had happened. I love the way so many people share their own knowledge and stories in the comments... Brilliant!

[@screwdriver5181]

My late father was responsible for bridges and tunnels for what then was Manchester Corporation. He visited Guardian several times. Also in the late 40’s I can remember that there were normal colliery style head sticks where the brick shaft is now. The things which turn and click are Strowger selectors !

[@bcegerton]

Knew about Guardian and it’s purpose, also knew there was a shaft somewhere in there a it is but didn’t know about the Salford shafts. Always laugh at all the urban myths. Heard you can’t visit due to the amount of B.T. Cabling. Great video once again Tony

[@grahamhodson3458]

Many years ago (early 1970s) when working as a PO telephone engineer, I had to go down the Salford entrance to replace a telephone that had become damaged by water ingress, located at the bottom of the shaft, which was used for 'emergencies'. Back then, the entrance was just an 'innocuous' little brick structure with a heavy steel door, (without the steel fence) built to one side of an office car park. When they built the Dial House extension, the first thing they built was a concrete shaft about 20' in diameter, (reported to be 150 feet deep!) that would connect to the underground system. There is another 'exchange' besides Guardian, not too far away from Dial House, but I'm not sure that I can tell you under where it is - I had to sign the Official Secrets Act way back in 1969. There's a lot more down there than you think !!

[@jamiesut5866]

Fascinating! Thank you Martin 👍🏻

[@kylesmith3555]

I cannot even convey how happy I am that finally I know that pipe has been flowing non stop for decades. I’ve just turned 30 and it’s always been a mystery to be, every time I walk past it I notice it. Thank you so much.

[@MartinZero]

Thanks Kyle

[@chubb65]

The artesian well was for drinking water and was capped off years ago. The only thing pumped into the sewers when Guardian was operational was sewage.

[@teabag1954]

Terrific stuff Martin. As a Manchester kid in the 50s I often wondered what some of these strange buildings were. My dad would say 'left over from the war'.

[@teabag1954]

I used to go to the dentist off George St and aways wondered what that fearsome razor wire fence was all about. But being a little kid I couldn't see over it. Just a brick blockhouse to be seen.

[@MartinZero]

Its a very strange building

[@c4mp3rd4n]

I worked in dial house as a contractor when they were doing the refurb just before the fire in 2004. I was talking to a couple of sparks who had been working in the tunnels and you could gain access from dial house itself

[@MartinZero]

That’s one place I’d love to get in 😃👍

[@daverigby56]

@@MartinZero The entrance was a small door at the back of the doorkeepers lodge

[@simontay4851]

What caused the fire?

[@hairyairey]

@@simontay4851 electrical fault. Not a surprise the cables were over 50 years old

[@imark7777777]

@@hairyairey although that could also say something about the Sparky's who worked on it?

[@KarlHamilton]

Another amazing video Martin. Loved the music too!

[@explorewithant]

I no someone that has been in the Salford shaft,,he said it’s amazing,,when you go in the Salford shaft you go down a little ladder in to a room then there is loads of other ladders till you come on to a old looking tunnel with street signs,,,he said it looks a bit like a Victorian street,,he said it’s about 100 ft down

[@MartinZero]

Hi, yeah apparently it is very deep. I would love to go down there 👌

[@explorewithant]

Martin Zero me to

[@TheGramophoneGirl]

What was the cover story for building those tunnels? Sewer upgrades? Subway tunnels? Makes one wonder about the sewer upgrades and crossrail in London atm. Or would they be more guarded than that?

[@st1nk1n]

There is very little point in trying to protect against nuclear bast now since the bombs are so accurate and powerful that everything would be vaporised - even deep down in protected bunkers. There are very few bunkers in the UK now. They could only hope to protect against a small nuclear near miss or a conventional attack.

[@danapussyone]

As someone who has studied the BT cable tunnels and other underground stuff in the UK. THIS. IS. BRILLIANT. Beautifully made, well explained. Thank you.

[@redrotten1]

Great vid.. my father worked for the post office as a telephone engineer in Manchester throughout the 50s till late 80s he’s 90 years old now I will ask him about any buildings he worked at .. I do know he had his photo wiring up a building of importance as it was in the Manchester evening news 1960s he also said he was on the team that wired up the post office tower in London .. All them years wiring them up and we at home never had a telephone ! (He said it was so they couldn’t call him out at stupid hours lol ) which makes sense. Keep up the great vids

[@RegebroRepairs]

2:45 Nice tunnel. Would make for a great setting for an 80's synthpop album cover. :-)

[@MartinZero]

It certainly would Lennart

[@MrYfrank14]

funny how all governments are the same. no matter what country, they all think the same. nuclear war is not like WWII. it is not like rioting or a very bad storm. it is complete devastation so, they built the telephone exchange for who? we can assume government leaders will survive in bunkers, but who would they call? what would they have to talk about? i doubt anyone in Hiroshima or Nagasaki needed to make a phone call after the bombs went off. "General, Manchester has been flattened, everyone is dead, everything is on fire, high levels of radiation, but the phones are working."

[@MartinZero]

You make a very good point MrYfrank14 👌

[@ravingking]

absolute quality, I like your outlook and sense of humour

[@MartinZero]

@@ravingking Thank you 😀

[@alanclark2416]

nuclear energy.. and bombs are fkn fear porn.. all the elites are in the same satanic club.

[@stephenconnell]

@@alanclark2416 Address please? Phone number ? Do they accept charge cards? fly By Points? Liquor license? buffet? all info greatly appreciated. Look me up at my Gettysburg address

[@fly1429]

Martin you are a legend mate I am from Manchester and its good to see someone as passionate as me about it keep up the good work mate 👍

[@MartinZero]

Hi Dave thanks very much. You and me both 👌

[@adrianford2336]

What a great story so well put together brilliant.

[@gekkehenk1980]

I'm just subbed for a few days, but allready watch about 20 video's. I find this better and more satisfying to watch, then Discovery channel etc. I'm learning new things, even though I don't even live there. But i love the history over there, especially the industrial history. You are doing a wonderfull job at bringing small details of history to the public, that might otherwise be gone for ever!

[@alanw8834]

Bit late to this party, loving the videos you have produced, but the fact none of the 165 comments (so far) on this one mention your Mr Benn on the mantelpiece... WTF , judging by your musical tastes hobbies and attitudes you're a brother from another mother, keep it up pal xx

[@MartinZero]

Alan what can I say. You appreciate Mr Ben !!! Amazing. Never too late to join the party you are most welcome and thanks very much 😃👌

[@briangoulden6687]

Good stuff Martin. 👏

[@hovermotion]

Wow I never knew of these tunnels and I have worked in manchester for a long time...great vid......jim

[@arthurgrewer3018]

When I was a young lad in the fifties there was a mine shaft with winding gear like a coal mine in Piccadilly I asked a man what it was he told me a gold mine ha,they must have been digging these tunnels then

[@MartinZero]

Yes must have been these Arthur

[@spankysmp]

Very interesting. In the very early 80s, I started a job in the civil service in a department which looked after Government building in Manchester. At that time, BT hadn't been privatised so we also had P.O. buildings which of course included the Guardian Exchange. I never got the chance to go down there as I was office/admin based but a few of the technical guys (building surveyors and H&V engineers) often had to go down there for checking the structure and for maintenance.

[@Treddian]

My city of around 200,000 people in the US has a bunch of U-shaped vent pipes emerging from the ground at several public places around the city. A baseball diamond, a popular park, a shopping mall, etc. There is no underground structure known to the public but there is a small military base and a military landing strip in the city. Ever since I realized how many of those identical and inexplicable vent pipes there are, I've wondered if there is a secret military presence underground.

[@g1fsh]

That was a really interesting video Martin iv been looking for videos by people like your self about my ares but with no luck so far. Well done mate well done.

[@MartinZero]

Hi Gary. Thanks mate. You noticed the name change mate ? Hope you like

[@g1fsh]

Martin Zero lol no i never noticed mate but yeah i like the new name its a good idea. Cant wait for the next one now.

[@g1fsh]

Next video not next name hahaha

[@MartinZero]

Cheers pal. Ill be on it as soon as

[@dfpytwa]

I spent over 10 years working for a major data center in the US and I heard from several top Google techs that they have some deep underground server space somewhere in Manchester. I don't know if they were referring to those tunnels or something else. Supposedly Amazon and Facebook have space there as well. It would make sense since they are the biggest data miners out there and all in bed with big government.

[@MartinZero]

I think you are correct and this could be it

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Also the constant temperature air down there would help with their cooling costs. And ready access to the cable network for fibre interconnections.

[@fredbloggs545]

That might be the former Bank of England bullion vault now called Serverbank. I went down there many years ago when it was opened up as a co-location data centre.

[@MrTylerStricker]

Def needs to become a museum dedicated to Cold War era communications & technology

[@MartinZero]

That would be great

[@Caustictherapy]

I rememver about 10 years ago when the tunnels went on fire and the phone systems in the North were effected, the t.v. and radio were stating "the B.T. Tunnels in Manchester have been on fire", At the time I was working at Bolton Metro and it was cool to go into work and nearly everyone was referring to them as Guardien Exchange, this was when the Urban Exploration craze was still in its infancy so this kinda stuff was not as in the public eye as it is now but it was still cool that I was hearing general Normies refer ing to this super secret underground "City" by its proper name, it was like being in some exclusive club :)

[@MartinZero]

Be great to get down there

[@Caustictherapy]

@@MartinZero if only lol, the amount of time I been down that street wanting to climb over the wall :(

[@wazza33racer]

Ahh the good old cold war............when commies were commies and little green fuzzy creatures from Alpha centauri...........were little green fuzzy creatures from Alpha Centauri.

[@sniffadoghq]

The Anchor Exchange in Birmingham would be another good place for you to go to!

[@nobbystyles4807]

maybe subteranea have video as well. dying to know what it looks like now. shame you cant get in it. would love to do some photography down there.

[@funfox8133]

Brilliant little documentary and very informative - nice one Martin!

[@woodhead616]

I worked with a guy who worked for the OLD GPO he was a HGV driver for them and he told me that when he delivered there and if he was in a Ford transit van through that door is a industrial size lift for vehicles to take them down the shaft

[@towerarcade3150]

I heard the telephone exchange was separate from the bunker. Just as they finished the bunker, the Hydrogen Bomb was invented, rendering it practically useless. I'd love to see what's down there tho', legally of course.

[@plhebel1]

At 11:00 mins, If you look at the building at the right of the screen you see a cream colored pipe with about 4 foot stand offs keeping the pipe away from the side of the building,, that pipe is an exhaust stack I am betting for diesel backup generators . I worked in the power generation field at one time in my life and that would fit nicely with what you are saying from my knowledge of underground power systems. Not earth shattering info but it's all very interesting, thank you Martin .

[@LightDiodeNeal]

Brilliant thanks, and Great Music!!! :-D

[@JohnnyX50]

4625Khz is the home of 'The Buzzer' or ZhUOZ as its also known. I love the cold war stuff. I love your video of the Manchester Exchange, it shares lieange with the Anchor Exchange in Birmingham. Your video gives a lot more interesting facts than stuff I have read on the internet :) Thanks for sharing! :) love it :)

[@BJBRADY-c9d]

Your video tells a largely true account of the Guardian complex however there is one point that needs correction. The entrance in Back Geoge St is not protected by a giant steel door behind the shutter door as suggested but by a concret plinth weighing around 450 tons . As maintenance engineers we would have to prove it could be moved over the verticle shaft and seal the tunnel to Guardian. The plinth was on a railtrack and was driven by a few elecric motors . The weight of the plinth would crush clearance shims over a period and the plinth would drag against the shafts' concrete so we had to regularly renew the shims and test for correct operation. To enable the plinth to bed over the shaft the rail would curve downwards slightly at the end of travel and provide a nearly airtight seal There is an entrance in the yard to the left hand side of the building which provides access to about three flights of stairs leading to a lift. From my recollection there were steel doors at the top and bottom of the stairs and a giant steel door sealing the main tunnel to the exchange at the bottom of the shaft. Bren

[@johndufton9686]

How about asking for a permission visit?

[@hairyairey]

Good idea. I don't think I've been refused permission to anywhere, even if I have to sign an NDA.

[@multipreach2674]

Good luck with that. They would show you a small sector at best.

[@andyfound3465]

Hi Martin thanks again for a very interesting video

[@MartinZero]

Thanks Andy 🙂

[@andrewschmitz9707]

Love the history,and without wanting to cause a thread I agree with you.

[@Invisiblejihadi]

Fantastic video! I'd love to see more like this about secrets of Manchester hidden in plain view

[@MartinZero]

Hi, Thank you very much really pleased you liked the video. If you look at my other vids you may find something. Plus I will be making more. Thanks again 👍🏼😃

[@elizabethclayton2587]

Very interesting, we have nothing like this in Birkenhead or even Wirral, I love watching them, I don't watch TV thanks 👍 ps I've a Dalek from I was a kid looks like yours.. I've lost the eye ,any ideas were you can get them ? I've looked on line but I'm not very good !

[@Darrenbaker16]

Unfortunately stripped except 2 generators which remain

[@kenwilliams563]

It must have been a terrible place to work, I used to find the heat generated in Strowger telephone exchanges made them unbearable to work in on a hot day, so goodness knows what it was like in that place. Ventilation in large strowger exchanges was never good, as they relied on a sealed building with air drawn in through a filtered air pump (A Plenum system) to minimize dust and contamination on the switch contacts

[@MarkMunro-y8f]

Do crispy critters need phones? Humans are so silly.😂😂😂.Thank you Martin.😊

[@SuperDriverno1]

Have you noticed the Salford shaft is now cordened off and is within a building site. Now I'm not one to start conspiracy theories ;-)

[@profpep]

It's because the tunnel is full of fibre optic cables - damage them and Manchester loses most of it's internet.

[@TheChipmunk2008]

@@profpep yeah wouldn't want copper thieves getting down there. When they find it's only glass fibre, they usually slash the lot out of spite. Lost internet to our VDSL cab a few months back because of those *($*(#*'s

[@johnstewart9745]

I worked at 10 major st THE MINISTRY OF WORKS in the 60s used to check all the fire hydrants, lots of cables, not much else..🇬🇧

[@ianmaddams9577]

Wow what a blast from the past . It would be great to get down there and have a mooch about

[@MartinZero]

We would love to

[@ianmaddams9577]

@@MartinZero it mad to see how far your channel has grown. And the way you produce your videos now is 1st class. You could have your own tv show . It’s great seeing yourself and @DaftMonkey fast growing on here 👍🏻

[@daveselbow9128]

Excellent production mate

[@mojoejoejoe1026]

I worked there for 1 year of so 2004 while the uplift works were being carried out. During this time almost all of the old telephone operational stuff left from the 50s was removed. Still an old tennis court marked out though. BT arent keen for this to be public knowledge. Though this video is available still after a year later.

[@MartinZero]

Thanks for the info. There is a chapter in a book about it by Keith Warrender so I dont get the secrecy still surrounding it. Everyone knows about it

[@mojoejoejoe1026]

@@MartinZero some very intresting video uploads. Your local historical knowledge is astounding and enteraining to watch The rumours were at thr time that BT would shut down websites exposing information about the Guardian. With thier recent financial difficulties and streamling yeah and a book about it . Seems unlikely

[@georgeedwardscott7159]

Fab stuff. Love this guy

[@MartinZero]

👍

[@ateam6486]

we have this system in springfield illinois, there is no record of it, but i know its there because i was in it and saw the rows of computers and what they do, its operational to this day, it also has giant battery power back up system, the main entrance is a old abandoned brick building, it looks like nothing as you drive past it. and yes 150 feet deep. i took the secret elevator down, it was a very long ride,

[@MartinZero]

Wow sounds great !!!

[@davidk8893]

The United States had another approach to a nuclear-resistant telephone network: the AT&T Long Lines network. It consisted of a network of towers housing huge microwave horns, forming a line-of-sight network spanning the entire country. The equipment at the base of many towers was housed in concrete bunkers that were blast resistant to a nuclear bomb as close as 5 miles. The network was not only a backup network, however, as it was used for long distance telephone calls, television broadcasts, and data transfer throughout the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, until it was deactivated in the 90s. However, many of the towers still stand, and occasionally you can see them with the microwave horns still attached. If you ever see an odd looking tower with huge horns on it while travelling America, you have seen an AT&T Long Lines tower.

[@st1nk1n]

Most of the UK military lines destined for the USA headed north through the main cities to Mormond Hill in Scotland. From there they were transmitted across the Atlantic.

[@imark7777777]

We were driving around and i spotted a Tower I later looked it up on Google Earth and had no idea what it was but got a bigger picture of it. A year later I looked it up again and somebody had filled in more information on it. it was kind of cool to find out that I drove by long lines Tower.

[@davidk8893]

@@imark7777777 Yeah, they are pretty neat! I always would see a big odd looking tower on the way to Oklahoma City when I would travel there a couple times a year, and this year I finally decided to figure out what it was. The one that I always see is particularly interesting as it still has the microwave horns intact. It's in Gainesville, Texas, and is on Tower Hill road. (what a fitting name!) There's a pretty interesting website about the towers (long-lines.net) that I would recommend giving a visit if you're interested in the history of the system.

[@freesaxon6835]

The old type of mechanical exchange you describe is called a strowger exchange

[@MartinZero]

Thank you

[@user2C47]

@@millomweb Many types electromechanical exchanges prefer dial pulsing, but some can use DTMF decoders. "Strowger" exchanges are known as Step exchanges in the US, and are the best choice for businesses and rural areas.

[@imark7777777]

I was thinking of a crossbar exchange but I my memory might not be pulling that up correctly or it could just be another name for the same thing

[@TheChipmunk2008]

@@imark7777777 Crossbar's different... but in the 50s, the preferred equipment type of the GPO was Step by step. Crossbar was considered an 'alternative'. Interestingly (to telecomms geeks) crossbar mimics the operation of a human operator better than any of the other forms Oddly they used to label exchanges as to what type of tech they used. TXS was 'telephone exchange, step by step', TXK was crossbar, TXE was electronic (analogue) and TXD was digital

[@discopot]

Near Chancery Lane in London I used to work right next to a similar set of tunnels I believe they were on fetter lane

[@martincotterill823]

In the 70's there was a nuclear bunker in the woods near Heald Green, at least that what us kids called it

[@HenrysAdventures]

Fascinating video! Some of those tunnels remind me of the passenger tunnel between platforms on the London Underground.

[@MartinZero]

Yeah very similar

[@garethparr649]

Only just come across this Martin. Fascinating would love to no the extent of highly secret subterranean activity that’s gone on over the yrs and how much is still in use or been abandoned

[@Swaggerlot]

Part of the network that included the Kingsway exchange in London and the Anchor exchange in Birmingham. System now carries many of the BT main trunk lines.

[@MartinZero]

Yes correct. I'd like to look at the above ground evidence for those two as well 👍

[@chrisgleave1933]

When I was a kid my dad used to talk about working at Guardian with the GPO. He also mentioned a telegraph pole he said was one of the tallest in the country, all so how it was a pain to climb.

[@simontay4851]

Why was it so tall? Usually they're a standard height, tall enough for the highest trucks to fit under.

[@johnsimpson6815]

It’s entirely possible it was one of the ones in the middle of the railway shunting yard at Red Bank, bottom of Cheetham Hill Rd. I know those were known as 60foots …. and as an apprentice in the 60’S I had to climb one. Good view though. Lol Why they were 60ft, no idea.

[@themediaman100]

My Mother used to work down there. It wasn't until the wall of secrecy was lifted, in the 80's I think, that she spoke about it. All we knew from her was that she worked at Piccadilly. Later she said that her access point was a secret lift in the Piccadilly Plaza hotel. There is also a miniature rail system underground in Manchester to handle mail services.

[@stevelomas4119]

What a load of bullshit...get outta here.

[@immortalclass]

I once visited what I recall to be a heritage railway somewhere in the UK which has/had a working mechanical telephone exchange. The railways, telegraph and later telephones co-developed, obviously, so the connection is relevant. If only I could remember where it was... You could make a phone call between two phones in the same room.

[@peterdunning2952]

The "dean forest railway" at Norchard,near Lydney in Gloucestershire is probably where you seen it,in their museum.It is as you describe and does still work.

[@immortalclass]

Yeah, that was it :)

[@andrewjones5801]

Great video. My Dad used to work for BT and had the keys to that car park in China Town; we used to park there because it was free! The lift that goes down is completely mechanical, I think diesel powered so it wouldn't be affected by the EMP from a nuclear weapon. As someone else has said here, my Dad said there was a secret entrance in a cleaner's cupboard in some offices somewhere.

[@MartinZero]

Brilliant Andrew. What a parking place !!!

[@imark7777777]

Got to make it look like it's active so nobody bulldoze is it

[@woodswerks]

7:23 this looks very much like a ROC bunker entrance with the raised plinth housing air vents and the outlet pipes for a manual sump pump at the bottom of the vertical ladder.

[@DrNick1960]

7:20 - Yes this is the Dial House shaft, but it has been capped and now serves only as a ventilation duct (note louvered panels in side walls) feeding 2x 300mm metal pipes (no idea why they built the steps up to the top surface!!)

[@Rosscoff2000]

Doesn't the the top have a manhole cover for emergency/ maintenance access?

[@geoffpeel1359]

Excellent. Would love to go down

[@well-knownun-known2699]

There is a telephone exchange building at the Ardwick End, or so I believe. Remember it from the 70's and it's still there.

[@eriol_mits3121]

@6:29 I used to walk past this ever day going into Salford Uni down Chapel Street and had no idea that was an entrance into the tunnels.

[@RingwayManchester]

What can I say mate, well worth the wait! By far your best put together video yet, loved the intro. Some interesting stuff I didn't lnow too. I've got one about the backbone network involving Heaton Park that's been on my to do list for the best part of 2 years if you fancy joining me.

[@MartinZero]

Hey !! Thank you. Glad you liked the intro too. Yeah I should of mentioned more about the network. Lets do it 👍

[@nedkelly4999]

I would like to see a vid on Heaton park. I read a magazine years ago and it said there was some kind of hospital under the park with a tunnel leading the the Manchester town hall. There is a ventilation shaft of some sort in the park, about the size of a phone box. Might be for the metro link tunnel, would like to find out more. Love the vids👍

[@MartinZero]

Thanks Ned. Ive never heard of that, sounds quite amazing. Ive spent a lot of time in Heaton Park. The former frontage of the old Town Hall is there.

[@hairyairey]

A number of commenters here mention the underground fire in 2004. www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/mar/30/simonjeffery and news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/3577799.stm. As an electrician the fire wasn't unexpected. Those cables had been there for nearly 50 years. Would be a great site for a movie baddie.

[@MrNeild123]

Yeah Glasgow has the same idea think it’s the BT tunnel runs throughout Glasgow,through the financial area,under central station even to the hospital,still open I beleive