No one talks about the X-Y band, a telephone line buried deep underground that went around the country, including Police Stations, it was a one way telephone line to send out orders to the regions. No reply could be made, you just listened. It was tested around 11pm every Sunday.

@MSmith-vv6fk

4 ай бұрын

Their was one at Blunham beds,

The government wouldn't get nowhere near it today. Would still be stuck on the M25 when the missiles hit.

@accamps

Жыл бұрын

😂 hahaha hahaha ha lol hahaha 😂 ffs ahahahaha awwww that was funny ur right tho

@patdbean

Жыл бұрын

They would declare the motorways to be essential service routes , so there would be no traffic jams because only government vehicles would be on them

@kenwelckle367

Жыл бұрын

@@patdbean plus most likely they would have relocated prime Minister to bunker as threat of nuclear war increased.

@dessmith7658

Жыл бұрын

I prefer the Russian model thanks

@patdbean

Жыл бұрын

@@dessmith7658 what Russian modle?

“Threads” absolutely terrified the s***e out of me. It seems so odd now to look back and realise how accepting we were of the Doomsday Clock and the prospect of nuclear war erupting. I always said if the sirens sounded I’d just go out into the street and wait for it, because there’d be no point in living afterwards!

@Curiouscrazy

Жыл бұрын

Well the doomsday clock is still ticking and its the closest to midnight it has ever been, and look at us all watching a youtube video!

@sputumtube

Жыл бұрын

@@user-nu1vn3yy9s Thanks for responding. I'm also guessing that the variables must also take into account the magnitude of the explosion. Hiroshima was 20 kilotons. Modern nuclear weapons are in the mega-ton range (Tsar Bomba was 50mt! although mercifully never used). But the initial blast would be quick and painless compared to what would follow for those who survived. The film 'Threads' was (and still is) considered to be the most authentic representation of this nightmare scenario. Let's pray that our Gods don't let it happen. Peace be with you.

@sputumtube

Жыл бұрын

@@user-nu1vn3yy9s If this nightmare ever becomes real, I'm coming to live with you..!

@ericbrown1101

Жыл бұрын

@@user-nu1vn3yy9s Does it make it creepier for anyone else the notion that COVID lockdowns might have "prepared" us for nuclear war?

@john45305

Жыл бұрын

I have TREAD, THE DAY AFTER, and BY DAWNS EARLY LIGHT. The still give me the shivers when I watch any of them. They say that The Day after film at the end of the film, that this film does not actually represent what could actually happen in a FULL scale nuke attack. I would quite agree with that statement, as with the way Nukes have moved on in technology since Hiroshima and and the other place I can't spell LOL, it would take about 6 very high yield nukes to wipe the UK of the map. I do worry about what's going on with Russia and Ukraine what with Putin keep mentioning he will use battle field nukes if the west got involved and we are involved by giving weapons to Ukraine, he might just carry out his threat, so IF he does I will stand outside my back garden with a good old British Cuppa and kiss my ass goodbye, Might as well.

I have been to the bunker a few times and it’s absolutely fascinating. Mike’s voice can be heard on the audio wands that give you a commentary of what you see as you move through the layers. Definitely stepping back in time when you see some of the technology that was installed back in the day. The diesel tanks held enough fuel to power the place for 3 months. Great video !!

@Gang-zy7lq

9 ай бұрын

Whod want her that voice horrible

When I visited in 2019 the recorded tour said that there would be a 'ring of steel' around the bunker as the nuclear threat was being deployed, half to keep people out who could be seekng shelter, and half to keep those already inside in, in case they had second thoughts and wanted to face the annihalation with loved one's trapped on the outside. I recommend a visit.

In 1976 at 18 years old i had to go to Kelvedon Hatch to fix a Pye base station in a small building at the bottom of that mast. I could tell there was something unusual and special about that place, but had no idea there was a nuclear bunker underneath. It felt like a cross between a telephone exchange and an RAF base. Something about the style and the infrastructure. It was obviously more than just a comms site.

I'm an engineer by profession, when I was an apprentice who worked on the building of Chilmark Bunker, an amazing place and massive learning curve, we had at the time sign the official secret act, with time that no longer applies 😀

@eliotmansfield

5 ай бұрын

Everyone is bound by the osa, regardless of whether you have signed it.

@HerbertTowers

3 ай бұрын

@@eliotmansfieldYup, signing it is just a way of ensuring that individuals are aware of the law and acknowledging such. No "I didn't know" mitigation defence.

The story about the local pointing the way to the secret bunker reminds me of my friend when he was in the TA having to deliver to our local 'secret' bunker. He too got lost and had to ask for the MOD 'storage facility' and the local said "Oh, it's easy to find the fallout bunker mate, you just follow the good roads and avoid the potholed ones and you get straight there". I remember exploring in the woods behind the place as a child in the late 1960s or early 1970s and being chased off by armed guards.

@KumaBean

Жыл бұрын

That part about following the good roads made me smile, lol 🍻

I've visited The secret nuclear bunker in Ongar Essex every year for years, not only is it a functional bunker, there's also an outdoor rope climb and archery for adults and kids and an operational hot and cold food canteen. On the bunker's grounds also resides a paintball range and go kart track too. Parts of the bunker's massive rooms can be hired out for private events. Mike's a great cheerful character, always happy to explain how things work in around the bunker to inquisitive minds, that's if you can catch him standing still long enough to ask him. If you haven't visited the Bunker, I'd highly recommend it, it's a good day out for the whole family.

@alfiegalley

Жыл бұрын

I went there with my school in year 6 I an near Southend and I had never thought we had a bunker in Essex until then

Sarah Agha does a wonderful job on this story, which really needs to be told for the next generation. I am glad she mentioned R. Briggs' book 'When The Wind Blows'.. This made a v great impression upon me, back in the day. Well done. Nice one Sarah and team. 🌟👍

@ciararespect4296

Жыл бұрын

Easy on the eye too. Id be in bunker with her

It's an interesting museum to visit, I haven't been for many years now. I used to go about 3 times a year for events held there and met Mike on many occasions, he was always a friendly bloke who knew he was custodian of a special location.

@racheldemain1940

Жыл бұрын

Blimey! I went once and that was enough. What kind of events did they hold there?

@steveclarke6257

Жыл бұрын

@@racheldemain1940 larp based on the TV series Stargate

@mehf649

Жыл бұрын

I went there once with the scouts a couple years ago and stayed the night. We had a great time exploring the bunker by ourselves. But I wouldn’t recommend going to the toilet in the middle of the night and walk past the partly lit medical ward with all the manikins.

@sentinelboy8827

Жыл бұрын

@@mehf649 I did a hike to there as an explorer scout and stayed the night 15 odd years ago. The medical ward was definitely an eerie place.

I volunteered and ran tours down at my local RSG (9 - Drakelow) - it was formerly a WW2 shadow factory too so attached to a couple of miles of tunnels in addition to the government office stuff. it's turned into wine storage now which is a shame but a few volunteers are using a small portion of it to create a mini Kelvedon style museum.

A very interesting view of the idea that a nuclear war is survivable & the use of bunkers to govern what was thought would be left of the UK afterwards. I was a tiny cog in this, as I was a member of the Royal Oberserver Corps. In my post - one of the many small reporting bunkers - we weren't under any illusions of surviving. The "protective" kit we had was... a duffel coat. A Naval duffel coat, to be precise. One of them in my post was dated 1944. We had no NBC suits or respirators. In my post, we generally reckoned we wouldn't even survive 24 hours IF our bunker wasn't destroyed when the bombs detonated.

@liammhodonohue

Жыл бұрын

@mick parry I continue to be fascinated with the ROC posts. What was your motivation for joining? I liken it to St John Ambulance, kind of reassuringly pointless - you clearly had no illusions that you would survive for much longer than at home. What did friends and family think? I studied the Cold War in early 2000 and could not quite grasp how the USSR and the collective West could go from fighting nazi Germany to nearly fighting each other.... and actually fighting in the case of various proxy wars - it motivated me to study Russian to hear the other side. I visited the Taganskaya bunker in Moscow, ex hardened telephone exchange - much like the Kingsway, Guardian and Anchor exchanges in London, Manchester and Birmingham.

@k1200ltse

Жыл бұрын

@Liam O'Donohue Apologies for the slow reply. I only just saw yours. I joined because I wasn't able to join the Armed Forces as had a spinal cord injury before i could join. My family all served - my father was in the British Army for 22 years, my Grandfather fought in WW1 from beginning to the end & my cousins also served, one in the Falklands conflict. In point of fact, I had to get a letter from my doctor that I was able to use a ladder to get in & out of a post. A unique distinction as a medical wasn't needed for the ROC. My friends & family didn't really have an opinion as I didn't tell them much about it - it was, if not secret, then certainly secretive at the time.

@liammhodonohue

Жыл бұрын

@@k1200ltse thanks for the reply. I am coming to understand the thought process behind volunteering for this kind of duty.

@k1200ltse

Жыл бұрын

@Liam O'Donohue Having thought about it some more, part of the reason for joining - probably a large part - was that if nuclear war had happened I'd have been doing something, not just sitting waiting. The training also taught me a lot about what nuclear warheads could - & couldn't - do & the effects of flash, blast, etc. Also, the different types of detonation, i.e. ground, air & water (surface & subsurface) bursts & the difference in effects caused. It was (is) very interesting. And utterly terrifying.

I remember when this first opened as a museum the owners were optimistically advertising pre-booked places in the bunker in the event of war. It occurred to me at the time it would be very naive of anyone to purchase a space there because if things suddenly went south the gov't would seize that and every other available and half suitable bunker back in an instant, buy back clause or not.

This place is well worth a visit. Absolutely shocked when I walked into that house and what was behind the facade. The place is vast. Very chilling.

The Queen was supposed to be moved to the Royal yacht Britainia. It had a filtered, positive pressure system in most of the ship. It was also equipped with state of the art communications. The communications system was updated several times.

Fantastic documenrary. Very well done. I was with the RAF in 1983 when we came down to the bone, a holocaust was averted by Stanislav Petrov. The USSR had a Computer prob that showed that the west had launched ICBMs, the Kremlin was almost about to launch when he stepped in and stopped it

Visited Kelvedon a few months ago, very impressive and chilling. Speaking of which, it's bloody cold down there too, dress warm if you go!

@samrodian919

Жыл бұрын

Ant 1980 thank you for the warning! I live close by Kelvedon Hatch and am planning on going to see it in the very near future. Soil temp at around 6 feet is roughly 55 F I believe and going deeper in theory should get warmer as you go close to the Mantle, so it can't be any colder than that , but 55 F is still chilly lol

@patdbean

Жыл бұрын

​@@samrodian919 when fully maned you would have the opposite problem. With 400-600 people it would need cooling.

As someone who was trained to fight a warmed up Cold War (1970s-1980s) this film brought back some odd memories, particularly the boiled sweets. I remember 1983 was a particularly nervous year for the military and the general public seemed to be largely unaware The manikins of the reincarnated Maggie Thatcher in this museum would put me off visiting the place; I spent an afternoon with that particular woman back in the early 1980s and that was enough thanks. The official Cold War Museum at RAF Cosford (Telford, Shropshire) is a stunning place to visit, lots of social commentary as well as fascinating military hardware housed in an architectural masterpiece. Please remember that Mr Putin still has thousands of thermonuclear weapons and a disquieting number of those are pointed in our direction. The idea that the Cold War actually ended is perhaps moot, maybe it is just different and almost as worrying.

@RandomRetr0

Жыл бұрын

Sorry you had to engage with that festering troll. At least you can console yourself with the knowledge that you're still here, and she is not ;)

@welshskies

Жыл бұрын

@@RandomRetr0 Mrs Thatcher was bad enough to be around but there was another Tory grandee who I thought was even more personally unpleasant, Leon Britten! Luckily I never came across Norman Tebbit.

@RandomRetr0

Жыл бұрын

@@welshskies Tebbit? Get on yer bike! Lol!! Heartless bastards all of them

@PalaceofPlacentia

9 ай бұрын

better not poke the bear then , like the liberals and dumb assess are doing

@PalaceofPlacentia

9 ай бұрын

@@welshskies we could do with Margret Thatcher now Britain would be a very different place and definitely no woke or liberal bullshit sane people have to endure on a daily bases

Thank you, this is a splendid documentary.

Wonderful documentary. Good to see Julie too from Atomic Hobo! Although, I can't get past the current steward of Kelvindon Hatch bearing a resemblance to Desmond Llewellyn.. Being shown around by Q from the Bond movies!

I visited kelvedon hatch bunker earlier this year in February it was fantastic it was like walking back in time!

I live only seven or Eight miles from the bunker at Kelvedon Hatch, and I've never been there, but now I have decided to visit as it look fascinating! I'm really looking forward to it.

Threads was horrifying to see as a child! It seared the fear into my mind too. I was around 8 years old when some idiot that was supposed to run a silent test of the siren infrastructure actually set them all off, for the entire north of the county. It was early, before school, and I remember the sinking feeling and screaming at my parents to take us to the bunker... I knew there was one, just not where exactly, and it would have been at least 7 miles away and we didn't have a car. My mum thoughtfully tuned into the local radio station which was already issuing apologetic notices on behalf of the county council. The sound of those sirens chills me to the bone to this day.

@ScrotusXL

Жыл бұрын

We used to have an air raid siren on top of the block of flats near us. I think that test went off everywhere. I live down south, it was the height of the cold war back in the 80's. On a hot summers day, clear blue sky and the thing went off. I remember reading at school about Hiroshima and the same weather when that all went south. I was terrified and waited for the flash and the heat. Total madness and we are closer to that now than ever before. Sorry, keep it light 😂

@the.parks.of.no.return

6 ай бұрын

They were always "testing" air raid sirens to annoy the population in britain.

It's always nice to know the people that caused nuclear war will be just fine

They did not build it as a refuge for central government. It was an RAF installation, part of the ROTOR network. When it became redundant it was then put to use a UKWMO Control until eventually became a regional govt bunker. The refuge for central govt was at Corsham in Wiltshire.

Mr Parish is a very engaging and formative gentleman. Top man.

Fascinating video. Well done!

Fantastic programme. I agree about Threads! It's still indelibly etched in my brain. Especially the end! Can only pray it never happens.

Fascinating to see this so recent but hidden history and Sarah's another good presenter on the channel.

Wonderful and frightening documentary. I love this channel!

Amazing story. I had no idea about this. Thanks for showing us this documentary.

visited this place in 2019, whilst on holiday in the UK. eerie but fascinating.

Thank you so much for this well researched account of Britains Cold War strategy.

excellent film...congratulations historyhit

Fascinating documentary, and rather well timed. My mum always tells stories of the time when people were practicing in case of a nuclear attack. My nanna used to have drills with my mum and her siblings where they had to put things around, and get under the table. I quite often giggle at the idea of them practicing for any kind of bomb and expecting to survive with a kitchen table surrounded by other household items. I can never work out if my Nan would have thought the table was stronger than the house, or whether it was to protect them from debris. It must have been terrifying for them. I think it’s clear if there was a nuclear attack, we wouldn’t survive it, let’s just hope the superpowers remember those three key words “mutually assured destruction!”

@elbuggo

Жыл бұрын

RE: get under the table It was pure fear porn theater, like they did with these ridiculous face diapers against the monster virus. By pumping up fear they can control the majority and get what they want. Nukes are pure fear porn. When was the last time you saw one go off?

@darrengallagher2208

Жыл бұрын

brainwashing at its best

@balthiersgirl2658

Жыл бұрын

Tell that to the usa

@Rob_Moilanen

5 ай бұрын

"Global Thermonuclear War, the only winning move is to not play the game."

@Rob_Moilanen

5 ай бұрын

​@@balthiersgirl2658clean up your own mess and stop begging us to do it for you...

Cities across the United States had similar, but markedly smaller bunkers. Two of the largest I'm aware of were in Portland Oregon, and Greenbrier West Virginia (Greenbrier was for the U.S. Congress and Presidential Cabinet). In New Orleans there was one for the City Government, located underground on West End Blvd. that I would see everyday as a child. I actually had the opportunity to visit it and get the two penny tour one year before it was abandoned in 1987. Now no one hardly knows it was there... it's covered over with condominiums. It could "house" approximately 100 people, had a radio/TV station, infirmary, armory, kitchen. It was staffed 24/7 from 1958 to 1987

Great film thank you for uploading

I was a member of the now defunct Royal Observer Corps in the late 70s. We regularly held weekends exercises on a wartime footing plotting fictitious detonations around the country and predicting fallout. Horrificaly realistic.

I actually live near here, it's pretty funny to see road signs to the "secret" nuclear bunker

I’ve been to Kelvedon Hatch a number of times, it’s incredibly interesting to have a look around. Well worth a visit.

Tons of jewels displayed in the video. These are just a few that I caught ;) 22:58, 35:09 Creed teletype model 444, lots of them throughout the video. 35:41 On top of the cabinet in the back. Telegraph Distortion Measuring Set made by ATE, local and remote unit for testing telex lines. 35:09, left side, Creed 6s mechanical paper tape reader, with some paper tape perforator behind, that I cannot identify 35:18 British Telecom "Cheetah" 87C/32K Telex from 1984, you can see the tape reader immeditely below the screen. 40:44 At the front, a Commodore 8250 40:44 & 41:29 At the very back, it seems a back view of a Commodore 8296 or similar (a roundy design)

Fantastic episode!

My Grandfather was based at Kelvedon Hatch underground unit during his RAF service in the 1950s, the bunker wasnt built for the government at first. After the RAF no longer required it, the role changed for the Government use. The people in the area knew that the 'bunker' was there, they saw it being built. What they did not know was what went on inside the bunker. The bunker was part of ROTOR for the south east of the UK, RAF Fighter Command, Missle Command and Anti Aircraft Command. It was manned during the height of the Cold War. I still wonder with the quality of History Hit TV, at no time was Britain reliant on American fighters intercepting the Russian 'Bears'. The Hawker Hunter, that entered service in 1954, had a maximum cieling of 50,000ft, while the Russian Bear Tu-95 had a maximum cieling of 45,000. The British aircraft industry led the way for early Jets, even the Gloster Meteor could fly at 43,000ft, and the Gloster Javelin could reach 54,000ft. The EE Lightining entering service in 1960, could reach the height of the Russian bombers, much faster than any other fighter, it was basically a rocket. Its weakness was its fuel capacity, it could reach the required height, but would need to immediatley refuel once reaching it. Are we really meant to believe the RAF, did not have an aircraft capable of intercepting the Russian TU-95 for eight years? The RAF was the ariel defence of our country, and was tasked with dropping our nuclear weapons if the ballon went up. What would of been better for public moral, telling them they had a chance of survival, or that it was pointless? The Government did not build bunkers for its self, they built radar and communication bunkers for the RAF, that once they were no longer required, were given over to civil defence use by the Government. When the bunkers were built, they were only as good as the day they were designed. The bunkers that were built, would of been manned in the build up to the collapse of international relationships by the Government. The RAF manned Kelvedon Hatch throughout its use by the RAF, with attached Royal Artillery secondments. RAF personnel were regularly tested, to see if they were not discussing sensitive information. On the coach or truck from RAF North Weald, there would often be a penetration test done, by a new man getting on board and asking questions. Anyone that gave away information, would be taken away. Having lived through the Blitz on London, his RAF service and Army service, my Grandpa was mentally reassured by the MAD status that went on throughout the Cold War.

@skepticalbadger

Жыл бұрын

To be fair, they state that it was a ROTOR bunker in the video - you wouldn't be able to complain about the American fighters goof if they hadn't. Secondly, you are right about the fighter intercept claim, but that claim came from the owner and custodian of the site who is not a historian and does get things wrong (notably that the bunker would have been THE government bunker in the even of war - it wouldn't, that was Corsham. The rooms prepared in the final phase of development at Kelvedon Hatch were only in the event that Corsham was inaccessible or if a new PM had to be designated and therefore operate out of KH). My point is that if they are guilty of anything it's believing what he has to say and not fact-checking him. This has been a problem with history documentaries for a very long time - HH are by no means unique. Even the best documentary series from the 1960s-80s got things wrong. You yourself are wrong too, I'm afraid - the government absolutely did build bunkers for itself, Corsham being built within an existing tunnel network, yes, but it still had to be built. Others were built from scratch e.g. Chilmark - look on SubBrit. Not to mention that even converting existing structures to SRCs or RGHQs involved a lot of construction and cost. Not that I personally think the government shouldn't have had them - they should.

@danielmarshall4587

Жыл бұрын

@@skepticalbadger Yes the "government" very much built the bunkers for themselves...... the bungalow/farmhouse disguised as a bunker gaurd house(once you've seen one you've seen them all) would not have misled an attacking army. These bunkers were quickly reappropriated to enable those in power to keep hold of that power/control. The Panorama episode "If the Bomb Drops" has interviews with some of the civil servants who'd be in these bunkers, and there's a real Dr Strangelove vibe.

@Antiques-ud7yp

Ай бұрын

We had the vulcan too

I think I'd rather get vaporised instantly at ground zero at least that way I would not know any different. Otherwise I've got a wheelie bin I could hide in, I could give that a whirl.

This was a fabulous documentary 👏 awesome work.

Greetings from Brazil, and thanks for this video.

Brilliant presentation and contributors. I'm a new subscriber 😊

We have a similar one outside of Ottawa, Canada. It is currently a pretty neat museum called the Diefenbunker.

Very interesting film. I remember the "Protect and Survive" booklet being delivered to my home and the infomercials on TV at the time. Scary uncertain times a bit like now...😬🤪😂

Been there and its pretty interesting but years before that, some 23 or so years ago, we used to park our cars in the access tunnel to smoke joints, was a tight fit with the wheels slightly up the wall of the tube and mirrors pulled in lol. This bunker was replaced and it was not that bunkers were just closed, the new one is accessed from an unmarked slip road on the M25 and is still operational as far as i know.

That was a really interesting documentary!!

The people who start the war stay safe while the people suffer

There's one under Dorchester Library. I had to visit it when I was in the Fire Brigade in the 1990s. It was well dated even then.

Wow absolutely fascinating thank you

They didn't bother building enough bunkers for anyone else. thanks UK govt.

@patdbean

11 ай бұрын

So they could ALL starve afterwards? If a few million are still alive a year after the attack then there would be enough food for them. But if 40+ million are still alive one year in , they ALL starve.

@jimjones3286

9 ай бұрын

While people like jimmy saville wouldve been taken care of.

@patdbean

9 ай бұрын

@@jimjones3286 explain ? How would he have got into a bunker? He was not a politician , or a civil servant , or had any kind of admin role? DJ is hardly an essential occupation.

I did a ghost hunt there years ago and the place is creepy. Feels like someone is watching you around the toilets

27:22 " hanging on " nice message from the producer/director

@michaelfraser5723

9 ай бұрын

HANGING ON! ?

Threads was scary as hell. And when The Wind Blows, even the Protect and Survive was scary as a kid. I remember being told about the 4 minute warning but everyone said they didn't know what that would be. Much like in the episode of Only Fools & Horses The Russians are Coming, great episode. There is always something I find strangely cosy about these bunkers.

@dongately2817

Жыл бұрын

Cozy is exactly how I feel about these places - a strange feeling I could never quite understand

Love your work 👍

It's well worth a visit ...bit of a hidden gem

Those "Protect and Survive" ads on telly absolutely terrified me as a child in the early 80's as there was a few moments when the threat was growing but luckily, things calmed down.

MOLD Clywyd North Wales, nuclear bunker under the fire station. When they washed the engines water dripped through the ceiling, of the two blast doors, one was substantial but the money ran out and the second was a UPVC front door.

What hardly anybody realises, is that the nuclear threat was never completely removed, only reduced. Today, it seems the threat has returned, but in a slightly different configuration.

@madanto2394

Жыл бұрын

If crazy Vladimir strikes a match

@trespire

Жыл бұрын

@@madanto2394 I'm no fan of Putin, but NATO and the US also share resposibility for what's going on. Then there are N.Korea, and Iran, both have threatened to use it.

@GorgeDawes

Ай бұрын

When have NATO and the US threatened to nuke anyone?

I used to plan as a child how I and where I would hide when a bomb was dropped. Crazy to look back on.

I loved my time at Kelvedon hatch, but A) The first atomic bomb was dropped at a quarter past eight and not a quarter past nine and B) The explosion footage afterwards was from the Nagasaki bomb.

Awesome, got me subbed!!

farmhouses don't usually have a concrete loading bay either lol

There is still an air raid siren on top of the fire station where I live outside Glasgow as I live only about 30 miles from the nuclear submarine base at faslane on the Clyde I don’t think the governments new text warning will help me in anyway 😂

Enjoyed this

i went there a few years ago, brilliant trip

Pity the BBC Wartime Broadcasting Service (WTBS) studio at 44' looks more like a store room for old broadcast kit than the actual studio setup. The rack of kit behind the presenter is a genuine BBC Deferred Facilities (DF) RSG studio rack. But no way would all that kit be in the studio. The essence of the WTBS DF kit was simplicity as, in the event, keeping it going was the key. "Chewing gum and string" was the term mentioned to me by those chosen to be part of the WTBS.

Part of what makes this so chilling is that this danger is still very real. With everything going on with Russia and China rn, we're arguably on the verge of a new cold war. The CDC I believe has a modern, updated page on how to survive a nuclear strike and what to do in the event of nuclear war. I'm sure the British government also has a similar page. Terrifying times then and now.

@residentelect

Жыл бұрын

It's interesting to consider just exactly what would happen post-detonation. If we use COVID as a litmus test, on the one hand the vast, vast majority of people (in the UK, and I'm guessing in the US and Canada too) complied with the orders to isolate themselves in their households, patiently await further advice from the government/National Health Service etc. But on the other, we saw some genuinely selfish behaviour, with people hording (remember the toilet roll apocalypse of 2020 lol) stripping shelves of non-perishable goods fuel and medication, refusing to check-in on elderly and vulnerable neighbours, and overwhelming hospitals/ambulance services with minor ailments and injuries, despite us being told the healthcare system was at breaking point. We're a very charitable nation, and we will always do what we can to help other countries in their time of need (Ukraine conflict being a prime example) but I do wonder if it came to it, would both the government, and the surviving public, be quite as proactive to help their fellow human if catastrophe struck on our doorstep...?

@balthiersgirl2658

Жыл бұрын

It's the usa causing all the problem

There's loads of abandoned underground bunkers in the UK, I suggest you find out where your nearest is, because it's getting spicey

I went there. Didn't half give me the heebeegeebees!!. It was so scary being below ground and the models of the people were so grey. There was a model of John Major when we went. Could not get out of there fast enough!

Everyone should read “on the beach” by Neville Shute

Funny Churchill added himself to the conversation about dropping the bomb. Like him seducing FDR. What a character. Would have been great to me both.

Wow, I remember 'Threads'

The new london bunker is at the end of a underground tunnel that they made when they built the channel tunnel they used that cover to removal all the spoil and it is massive....

There's one of these near Crail in Fife..

Considering the UK has at the most 20 minutes from a Russian nuke launch to hitting the UK, Kelvedon hatch location is a bit far for a helicopter to reach with the PM in the time given. And thats not taking into account a 6 minute time for the Russian missile launch, detection and course plot. now you're down to 14 minutes to get the PM out of London. flawed plan.

Nice!

I have been here its in brentwood essex UK kelvedon

I'm glad I didn't have to watch 'Threads' as a three-year old, but I remember as a kid in Greater London in the Sixties listening to the WWII sirens going off, and thinking I've got four minutes to live (this was the folklore about how long you had to prepare from incoming hydrogen bombs.) I used to count to two hundred and forty, and I was still there... It was the monthly siren test, but I never got used to them, a month is a long time when you're a kid. Bring back the sirens, people take note of them, unlike electronic drivel!

Scary times.

Rotor radar station 60 odd built across Britain in the 1950s

Powerful

I played paintball in the woods near the bunker back in 1991 just before then end of the cold war and the bunker was still in operation. During a break we bimbeld over and was told to go away by a military guard who was hanging around near the bungalow. We went back to the paintball site for a brew.

The section on Tim Berners-Lee is a bit confused, I’m afraid. The internet was based on DARPANET, an American initiative for survivable communications during the Cold War. The World Wide Web, which TBL is credited with creating, is the hyperlink method where you can click on links to go to sites and documents.

This is a example of what goes on behind our backs when we are not looking The rich and powerful will always ensure there own survival andlet the rest of us perish have no doubt about that?

I’ve been here, it’s honestly such a strange experience, I don’t quite know why tbh

Happy to die swiftly in complete ignorance personally. The thought of dying slowly in a bunker and knowing it, would be dreadful...literally.

Rather misleading title. Kelvedon was not as claimed the emergency seat of government for the UK. It had a very minor role as the GLC emergency hq and later as the regional seat of government for that sector of the Uk. Central government had much more hardened relocation sites to hide in.

@g1egz

Жыл бұрын

Quite right too, this was an SRC, war room, the main governmental bunker was over at rudloe manor, corsham, burlington road, or whatever secret name it was using, l went to the main bunker, in fact, as a member of the UKWMO, l was stationed in kelvedon hatch on many a weekend, so, stop bigging this bunker up, lol, that farmer should know better, mind you, it beats farming, l suppose, lol

@jamesmcneil2472

Жыл бұрын

@@g1egz I wish these documentaries would actually talk to people like yourself who saw these places in operation and know how the system of continuity of ops and government really worked. I have some friends who worked at Rudloe back in the 70s and 80s and all i can say is if it was left to them to run and repopulate the destroyed UK we would have been in serious trouble. They are all pensioners now but still mad as hatters.

@nakedenby

Жыл бұрын

Agreed. Whilst that may have been a backup function it was never the intention to house the central gov't or prime minister there so that's stretching the facts a little. However I guess perpetuating the myth is probably a wry marketing ploy for the owners.

@nowster

Жыл бұрын

IIRC the main one was under Box Hill near Corsham Wiltshire. Search Wikipedia for "Central Government War Headquarters".

15:24 RAF Holmpton is in East Yorkshire not North Yorkshire 😉. Its just outside Withernsea

Now that the exact GPS coordinates of this facility is no secret the only question is if the structure can withstand the Khinsall missile which dives at 7 times the speed of sound.

The best place to be in an all out nuclear war is right under the tip of the nearest ICBM.

I think if MAD ever became a reality I would want to be as close as possible to a major city to die early. There is no reason to survive, our society would be sent back decades or centuries. Communication technology wouldn't work, our food would be contaminated and all our families and friends would be either killed or missing in the panic. Albert Einstein: "I know not with what weapons WW3 will be fought, but WW4 will be fought with sticks and stones"

Knew about this place in the 70s....

Thought this was going to be about the bunker underneath Box Bill in Wiltshire

A very thought provoking , well thought out and presented episode. Even with its sombre subject. There are many other aspects that were not covered especially the military side I would like to see in a future episode. I think what hit me the most was I lived during some of those times (Born in the 70s) and it was a real thing that was in the back of you mind, My mother told me of her fear during the Cuban missile crisis, both her and my Farther served in the RAF. My mother served in many bunkers and a Radar specialist. My dad was told they would have to protect the air base from Civilians by shooting them at the fence line in the event of a Nuclear war. Scary stuff.

@residentelect

Жыл бұрын

I'm ex RAF, and what your parents said about the ROE for unauthorised persons breaching security was 100% true. I was a medic, and one of my jobs when on station would be to respond air-side if the "Snowdrops" (your mum and dad will know who they are lol) ever "zapped" a civilian who made it anywhere near any (armed) aircraft/weapon systems on the pan. It also didn't matter if it was a training exercise, and the ordinance wasn't viable. If any protestor/post-nuclear survivor made it through the perimeter and got within range of the lads, they only got ONE verbal challenge before "bang" and lights-out. It's certainly not a job I would ever have enjoyed, especially in the scenario were it could be innocent people starving/suffering, simply wanting to make it onto the base for help... Grim.

@carabus0354

Жыл бұрын

@@residentelect My Dad told me about it in Germany at the time, my Mom was forced out of the RAF after being pregnant with me. My Dad was at RAF Bruggen and Wildenwrath. He said when they did training they were just given sticks to defend the base, was not RAF Regiment he was Air Crew. They would have the local Brunderwier attack as mock Russians, he said it got very heated from time to time. He worked on the Jags and Harriers before the Tonkas arrived and we were posted back to blighty RAF Cosford. I know the Snowdrops, I had to hand in a magazine of SLR live rounds (blanks) I found to them at Cosford after an exercise, I was all proud and when I gave they in they said nothing not even a thank you, I was right messed off because it would have been great for my collection but I was 8. Found a training granade we never handed that one in.