The Office of Emergence and Emergencies was always aware that - in the event of ‘something untoward’ the government would have to relocate. This part of the East Midlands was chosen as the alternative seat of power for a number of reasons. Firstly, it’s very Central, there are good transport links and it’s as far as you can get from the sea (handy in the event of aquatic invasion). Secondly, all the natural resources that meant the Industrial Revolution kicked off here. Thirdly, it’s not Manchester. Fourthly, and perhaps most importantly, there are a lot of pits around here, mostly abandoned in the 80s. These shafts and tunnels were extended, remodelled and reconnected so that the whole machinery of Whitehall could be inserted into the local landscape without anyone noticing. Sheds, huts and lean-tos all over the Midlands coalfields, and extending into in the Peak District, became secret entrances to the tunnel network - connecting to the steam railway thousands of feet below.