ONE of the best preserved cold war bunkers in the country is set to mark the 70th anniversary of the creation of nuclear weapons.
The former Royal Observer Corps’ headquarters in York, which was mothballed until English Heritage took on the site in 2006, will open five days a week ahead of the anniversary of the Trinity weapons tests on July 16.
The date in 1945 saw the United States Army conduct the first successful test of a nuclear weapon, a 20 kiloton explosion which was the outcome of the Manhattan Project, a joint effort by British, American and Canadian scientists and researchers.
There will be a series of events and activities to mark the event, beginning on Saturday, May 16 with the Cobweb Orchestra performing a site-specific underground recital composed by Michael Betteridge.
From June 20, a season of film screenings and after-dark tours will be held at the bunker, with a curated programme of rare films showing the different sides and aspects to war and the nuclear issue.
The Beyond Trinity programme at the bunker will culminate in a talk by University of York lecturer Dr Charles Barton on nuclear technology and the future, combined with a short tour of York Cold War Bunker's Operations Room on September 25.
For details, call 0370-333-1181.
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