Deepest bar in UK is being built in secret WWII bunker
Topics: Restaurants and bars, UK Food, News, Alcohol
Britt Jones
Featured Image Credit: The London Tunnels
Topics: Restaurants and bars, UK Food, News, Alcohol
London is building a new bar for the underground scene (literally).
If you travel to central London, you’re more than likely going to stumble upon a plethora of niche bars and pubs all across the city.
Whether it’s The Friendly Society in Soho or a good old drink at Bar One in Putney, London has much to offer.
But now, there’s something else that’s going to tickle the fancy of tourists and locals alike... if they can find it.
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If you know anything about the history of London, you’ll have been introduced to the underground tunnels that have been closed for the past 70 years.
They are the former Kingsway Exchange Tunnels, which was a mile of underground passageways around100-feet beneath the city that were created to be used as air raid shelter for those needing to hide during The Blitz.
But not only that, the tunnels were also used as Special Operations bunkers at the end of WWII, which gives it a pretty cool bit of historical significance.
But in true UK style, all that is being turned into a drinking attraction.
Now, the tunnels are set to become the deepest bar in the UK, after it undergoes a whopping £120 million makeover.
But don’t start planning your meals yet, as the 25-foot diameter and 8,000 square metre project isn’t supposed to finish until 2028.
The tunnels are supposedly under High Holborn, too, with the architects involved, WIlkinsonEyre, having planned a lift with wrap-around LED screens as the mode of transport to usher people to and from the establishment.
In collaboration with London Tunnels CEO Angus Murray, there are plans to open the tunnels as a part-museum, part-exhibition-space and part-cocktail-bar.
“When you go down into these tunnels, some 30 meters below London, it's almost impossible to not reflect upon the history that led those tunnels to be built, how they were built and ultimately, the men and women that sacrificed themselves through that process,” Murray said, per Time Out London.
He added it many of the historic features will be kept, telling the outlet: “There are two big generators that they put in after the war to power the telecommunications exchange,’ Murray explained about the plans. "Those pieces of equipment would all be retained – much like what Wilkinson[Eyre] did at Battersea – and people would see this original equipment that was inside the tunnels.”
This is pretty exciting stuff, but a bit claustrophobic for me, I’ll leave this adventure to you lot.