Re: Blakelaw underground bunker

Steve E. <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I have hear "tales" about them being linked by a tunnel, but haven't seen anything to suggest that to be true. Indeed there was someone on one of the tours of the Victoria Tunnel recently who swore blind that a lin between the said Victoria Tunnel was constructed to Kenton bar during World War 2 - now I do know tha is rubbish! 

Steve

There are some folk obsessed with imaginary tunnels. There was a
chap on the NORTHUMBRIA list some years ago who swore there was
a tunnel from the old Newgate to HMP Newcastle in Carliol Square.
His "evidence" was laughable, but he twisted facts and
extrapolated way beyond the bounds of sanity and reached this
ludicrous conclusion which, to him, became fact.

No amount of argument - not least the slight inconvenience of
several sewers, two Metro tunnels and one Metro station
intersecting his route without anybody ever noticing his tunnel -
would shake his belief.  I think both of the "tunnels" you
mention fall into the same category.

I suppose I'm prejudiced against legendary tunnels because of
a childhood experience.  As a youngster I used to frequent
Gibside Estate, as did many of my mates - this was long before
the National Trust took it on.  We explored all the old
buildings - much to the chagrin of the gamekeeper who patrolled
the place with his shotgun and whose one aim in life was to keep
us kids off "his" estate. If he saw us, bang went his shotgun
- shooting in the air, of course, but we ran off and told others
of our narrow escapes with 'bullets' whizzing past our ears.

But it was worth the risk as there was much to explore. The old
Gibside Hall had been a childhood holiday spot for our Queen Mum,
but it was last occupied in 1920 and the roof and floors had been
removed leaving just a crumbling shell with unexpected 50 foot
drops behind closed, but unlocked, doors - a dangerous place
without doubt. But in the basement, which was ground level at
the side, were some "dungeons" - actually stables, but why spoil
a good story - with chains, rings on the wall and heavy, barred
doors. We had such adventures there.

Then there was the Banqueting Hall high on a hill overlooking
the Octagonal Lake, magnificent even then - but in its heyday,
even more so as its walls had been covered from floor to ceiling
in mirrors. What a place - and now its fully restored as a
rather expensive but discreet weekend retreat where businessmen
take their secretaries for a spot of extra-curricular dictation.

Anyway, to get back to the topic, there was a legend of a
tunnel from the old hall to Friarside Chapel located one mile
to the SW. Of course it was nonsense as the chapel is pre
Conquest and the hall dates from 1760, but that hadn't
stopped the legend from taking hold.  And while pottering
just outside the basement of the hall one day, we found a small
hole in a stone path which seemed to have an open space beneath
it - must be the tunnel, we thought. So we scraped away some
plaster and removed a stone to reveal a tunnel in all
its glory.  Excitedly we ran home, grabbed torches, and
ran back; and two of us set out along the 'tunnel'. It headed
the correct way for about 15 yards then suddenly turned
and headed steeply downhill, far too steep to negotiate.
Looking up we saw something which, even to our 10 year-old
eyes, explained everything - it was the underside of a manhole
cover. We were in a sewer! Thank goodness the hall had been
unoccupied for 40 years. :-)

--
Brian Pears
Gateshead, UK
.

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