Mod Corsham Radio Studio |
| Hob Uid: 1577264 | |
Location :
Wiltshire
Corsham
|
| Grid Ref : ST8503569103 |
| Summary : The radio studio at MoD Corsham provided the facilities to broadcast information from the Central Government War Headquarters following a nuclear attack during the Cold War. It would have enabled the Prime Minister to broadcast to the world from the studio, via the BBC's emergency centre at Wood Norton. It is one of only two Cold War underground radio studios to survive intact . The radio studio is situated within two underground rooms within Spring Quarry, a Bath Stone quarry which had been requistioned by the Ministry of Aircraft Production in 1940 to be used as an underground factory for aircraft engine production. The factory closed in 1945 and in 1954 Spring Quarry was bought by the government . The northeast area was allocated for conversion into a Central Government War Headquarters designed to accommodate 4000 military and government staff including the Prime Minister and key cabinet officials in the event of nuclear conflict. Construction started in 1957 and much of the major work had been complete by 1959. However, installation of the radio studio was not completed until 1961. The Central Government War Headquarters was de-commissioned during the early 1990s and de-classified in 2004.The studio comprises two adjacent rooms, the radio studio which is approximately 4 metres square, and a technician's control room which measures approximately 4.4 metres by 3.7 metres. Both rooms are constructed of concrete block and have suspended ceilings, and have been lined with sound-proofing, which comprises square hardboard sheets with slits, framed in timber and fixed with metal hinges. The radio studios at MoD Corsham is a scheduled monument. For the designation record of this site please see the National Heritage List for England. |
More information : The radio studio at MoD Corsham provided the facilities to broadcast information from the Central Government War Headquarters following a nuclear attack during the Cold War. It would have enabled the Prime Minister to broadcast to the world from the studio, via the BBC's emergency centre at Wood Norton. It is one of only two Cold War underground radio studios to survive intact .
The radio studio is situated within two underground rooms within Spring Quarry, a Bath Stone quarry which had been requistioned by the Ministry of Aircraft Production in 1940 to be used as an underground factory for aircraft engine production. The factory closed in 1945 and in 1954 Spring Quarry was bought by the government . The northeast area was allocated for conversion into a Central Government War Headquarters designed to accommodate 4000 military and government staff including the Prime Minister and key cabinet officials in the event of nuclear conflict. Construction started in 1957 and much of the major work had been complete by 1959. However, installation of the radio studio was not completed until 1961. The Central Government War Headquarters was de-commissioned during the early 1990s and de-classified in 2004.
The studio comprises two adjacent rooms, the radio studio which is approximately 4 metres square, and a technician's control room which measures approximately 4.4 metres by 3.7 metres. Both rooms are constructed of concrete block and have suspended ceilings, and have been lined with sound-proofing, which comprises square hardboard sheets with slits, framed in timber and fixed with metal hinges.
The radio studios at MoD Corsham is a scheduled monument. For the designation record of this site please see the National Heritage List for England. (1-2)
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