The London Borough of Camden has given its support to proposals to turn a previously hush-hush government complex beneath the streets of Holborn into a cold war-themed tourist attraction.
It is the second authority to approve plans to open the Kingsway Exchange Tunnels to the public, under £220m proposals from developer London Tunnels Ltd. The 8,000sqm network straddles the boundary with the City of London Corporation. Square Mile planners gave their backing to the scheme in June.
The original two tunnels that form the core of the complex were commissioned by the government in the early 1940s for use as a deep-level air raid shelter, but they were never used for that purpose. In 1944, the site was converted to serve as a reserve government headquarters.
In the years after the Second World War, Kingsway Exchange Tunnels was a communications hub and a base for the Special Operations Executive offshoot of the Secret Intelligence Service – also known as MI6.
The network, which is 40m below street level, is believed to have inspired “Q Branch” in Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels.
In 1956, the Kingsway Exchange Tunnels became the London terminal of the first transatlantic telephone cable, TAT 1 – which allowed for the site to connect calls between the White House and the Kremlin in 1962, when cold-war tensions between the United States and Russia peaked.
In their 1950s and 1960s heyday, the tunnels accommodated up to 200 staff supported by self-contained water and air conditioning systems. They also boasted the deepest licenced bar in London along with a restaurant with mock windows and a recreation room with snooker tables.
LTL's proposals would turn the complex into a heritage trail saluting the site’s 80-year history. Under its scheme, the tunnels would be refurbished and visitors would access the network through entrances in Furnival Street and High Holborn. The attraction would also include a new bar.
Retained telecommunications equipment on display in a visiualisaiton of how the visitor attraction could look Photo: DBOX/TLT
Recommending the proposals for approval to members of Camden council's planning committee last month, officers said no harm had been identified to the area's existing heritage buildings. They said the project would bring economic benefits including new jobs and increased footfall to the Holborn area.
In June, the City of London projected the attraction would bring an annual spending boost of £60m-£85m to the Holborn area, as well as providing free visits to schools in the capital.
Proposals for a new subterranean bar are part of the plans Photo: Wilkinson Eyre/TLT
Both authorities' approval of the scheme is subject to conditions and the successful completion of planning-obligation agreements. Last year LTL suggested the attraction could potentially open in 2027.
More history
Immediately after the Second World War, Kingsway Exchange Tunnels were used as a document repository for the Public Record Office, based in nearby Chancery Lane.
From 1951 the network served as a communication exchange for the General Post Office, which was then still a department of state and responsible for the nation’s telephone system as well as mail.
The tunnel network was expanded, with the two original 5.1m-diameter tunnels augmented by an extension featuring four 7.2m tunnels in an offshoot at its eastern end.
Communications functions at the tunnels finished in 1990 and the site has been used for storage since. BT Group first launched a bid to sell the site in 2008 but only recently agreed a deal with LTL.