Kelvedon Hatch is an impressive underground structure situated in the middle of the countryside, underneath an unassuming bungalow-style building.
It was built for the Cold War, opening in 1952, with its sole purpose being to keep the government and military running in the event of a nuclear attack. It changed purpose in the 1960s, becoming an emergency defence centre, and remained active until it closed in 1992. Kelvedon Hatch is now a museum.
We have hosted three Junior Paranormal Events at Kelvedon Hatch, but there is one investigation that stands out the most.
Before I get into that, I need you to appreciate how remote the bunker is. To gain access, you have to drive down a long and winding dirt track. It is easily over half a mile long and zigzags through the vast fields that surround it.
Arriving at the car park, you then walk down a small pathway which takes you to a secret entrance hidden by nature. This, single-handedly, is the most remote location that we have investigated.
When we arrive, we are greeted by the very charismatic Mike, who hands us a sheet with contact information and gives us instructions on how to lock up. Then he leaves.
We are alone.
It is at that point that you appreciate how big the bunker is. There are three floors featuring an operations centre, a hospital, a radio broadcast booth, bunkers and a very long, very dark tunnel.
The walls are 10ft thick and, when at the bottom of the bunker, we are 125ft underground. It becomes a very intimidating space when the lights go out.
The banging begins
“That night” happened during our second event at the bunker, and it even unnerved my husband Michael, who is usually calm and rational.
The group walkaround at the start was uneventful: the usual grumbling stomachs and guests with squeaky shoes. We were very much lulled into a false sense of security because, after breaktime, things started to change.
We split into small groups, Michael and I leading one each and both carrying a walkie-talkie. My group went down to the second floor, while Michael’s group was on the top floor.
My group heard almighty banging coming from the ceiling above us. Bear in mind that these floors are made of incredibly thick concrete.
We knew there were sleeping quarters above us, so I radioed Michael to ask if his guests were jumping off the beds.
“No, we are all standing still, but we can hear it too and it’s coming from above us.”
How on earth could it be coming from above them?
It sounded like big, heavy footsteps pounding on the floor. Above them was nothing but lots of concrete and soil.
Michael sounded concerned.
“I need to check if someone has got in the building. It doesn’t sound right.”
As he was saying those exact words, we could all hear the banging start up again. Ensuring that his guests were safe, Michael went to investigate.
As soon as he had finished his checks, a confused Michael radioed me.
“The door is still locked. I have checked the CCTV cameras and had a walk around. There is no one here but us.”
It was a relief that there hadn’t been a security breach, but it raised lots of questions about what it was and where it was coming from.
We heard it a few more times that evening, but the noises decreased in volume and frequency, which was very strange. Perhaps something was trying to get our attention.
Putting it behind us, we continued our investigation, only to find that the odd experiences had only just begun.
Voices in the emergency stairwell
Somewhat at the core of the building is a staircase that serves as an emergency exit for the museum. It is out of bounds for investigating and, if it is opened, it will trigger an alarm.
It was here that both groups, on different floors and at roughly the same time, reported hearing “serious conversations” happening in the staircase.
Each time it was heard by a group, they would radio the other.
“Is that you guys talking near the emergency exit? Can you keep it down? We can hear you.”
Each time, the same reply came back.
“It’s not us, and we have heard that too.”
When you hear strange noises such as banging and voices, it really makes you aware of just how remote you are, deep down inside the bunker.
After the guests had left, Michael, our daughter and I decided to stay on and do some investigating on our own.
If we thought we felt isolated before, it was about to get a whole lot more intense.
“I think we need to leave”
Despite our earlier, slightly unnerving experiences, we decided to go down to the bottom floor of the bunker into the room where the maps are displayed, also known as the Operations and Plotting Room.
We settled down, sitting on the floor, and started to investigate.
The first noise that caught our attention was the sound of footsteps. Deep, heavy, purposeful footsteps which seemed to be pacing up and down in the room.
Then the conversations in the emergency exit stairwell resumed, but this time they seemed much louder, possibly because there were only three of us there.
Our plan was to stay and investigate on our own for an hour.
We lasted 20 minutes.
Then Michael said: “I think we need to leave.”
I didn’t need to be asked twice. The kit was picked up and we made a hasty exit.
Do I think it was anything sinister? No, not at all.
I feel it is residual energy that has been absorbed into the building, and the noises and experiences were all part of that.
Would we go back again? Absolutely. And we did return the following year.
P.S. The juniors were not scared in the slightest and loved every moment of it. As for the adults… some of us were a little frazzled!
To find out about Junior Paranormal Events, visit www.juniorparanormalevents.co.uk. You can also find Junior Paranormal Events on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
