Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker is a former government-owned
The first military use of the area was in World War II, when a
The bunker is open to the public most of the year. It has a substantial collection of military and
/ref> The museum includes information about the function of the bunker during the Cold War. There is a simulator designed to simulate conditions in the bunker during a nuclear attack. Visitors can watch the BBC film '' The War Game'', produced to inform the public of what would be likely to happen in a nuclear attack on Britain. Younger visitors to the museum can navigate the rooms in a game to find the "Cold War Spy Mice" (a large number of toy mice positioned in numerous rooms), the objective being to locate as many mice as possible and return their report to the desk for a prize; this avoids the more disturbing aspects of the bunker, such as the medical room, where a mannequin is depicted with symptoms of burns and radiation poisoning.
Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker
Tourist attractions in Cheshire Museums in Cheshire Nuclear bunkers in the United Kingdom Emergency management in the United Kingdom Military and war museums in England Cold War museums in the United Kingdom Continuity of government
The Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker is a former government-owned nuclear bunker
A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. ...
located at Hack Green, Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...
, England.
History
The first military use of the area was in World War II, when a Starfish site
Starfish sites were large-scale night-time decoys created during the Blitz to simulate burning British cities. The aim was to divert German night bombers from their intended targets so they would drop their ordnance over the countryside. The sites ...
was established at Hack Green. Its purpose was to confuse Luftwaffe bombers looking for the vital railway junction at Crewe
Crewe () is a railway town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. The Crewe built-up area had a total population of 75,556 in 2011, which also covers parts of the adjacent civil parishes of Willaston ...
.
A ground-controlled interception (GCI) radar station was added.
In the 1950s, the site was modernised as part of the ROTOR project. This included the provision of a substantial semi-sunk reinforced concrete bunker or blockhouse (type R6).
The station, officially designated RAF Hack Green, was also known as Mersey Radar. It provided an air traffic control service to military aircraft crossing civil airspace.
The site was abandoned and remained derelict for many years until taken over by the Home Office. The R6 bunker was then rebuilt as a Regional Government Headquarters (RGHQs) – one of a network of 17 such sites throughout the UK – designed to enable the government to continue in the aftermath of a major nuclear attack on the UK.
In about 1992, following the end of the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, the Home Office abandoned its network of RGHQs and sold many of the sites. The Hack Green Bunker was purchased by a private company and subsequently opened to the public in 1998 as a museum with a Cold War theme.
Current status
The bunker is open to the public most of the year. It has a substantial collection of military and Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
memorabilia, including one of the largest collections of decommissioned nuclear weapons in the world. It also houses Ballistic Missile Early Warning System equipment originally from RAF High Wycombe.Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker: BMEWS/ref> The museum includes information about the function of the bunker during the Cold War. There is a simulator designed to simulate conditions in the bunker during a nuclear attack. Visitors can watch the BBC film '' The War Game'', produced to inform the public of what would be likely to happen in a nuclear attack on Britain. Younger visitors to the museum can navigate the rooms in a game to find the "Cold War Spy Mice" (a large number of toy mice positioned in numerous rooms), the objective being to locate as many mice as possible and return their report to the desk for a prize; this avoids the more disturbing aspects of the bunker, such as the medical room, where a mannequin is depicted with symptoms of burns and radiation poisoning.
On television
Hack Green was featured in the television series '' Most Haunted: Midsummer Murders'' episode two in which the team investigates the murder of a soldier. It featured once again in Series 11. The band Everything Everything filmed the video for their 2009 single "MY KZ, UR BF
"My Kz, Ur Bf" (often stylised as "MY KZ, UR BF"; an abbreviation of "My Keys, Your Boyfriend") is a song from British indie pop band Everything Everything. The track was released in the United Kingdom on 5 October 2009 as the third single from ...
" inside Hack Green.
See also
* Radar * Linesman/Mediator *Central Government War Headquarters
The Central Government War Headquarters (CGWHQ) is a complex built underground as the United Kingdom's emergency government war headquarters – the hub of the country's alternative seat of power outside London during a nuclear war or conflict ...
* Civil Contingencies Secretariat
* RAF Rudloe Manor
* Corsham Computer Centre
* Continuity of government
* Wartime Broadcasting Service
* Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker
* List of museums in Cheshire
References
External links
{{Commons category, Hack Green Secret Nuclear BunkerHack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker
Tourist attractions in Cheshire Museums in Cheshire Nuclear bunkers in the United Kingdom Emergency management in the United Kingdom Military and war museums in England Cold War museums in the United Kingdom Continuity of government