A COLD WAR man cave capable of withstanding a nuclear blast is up for sale.
The bijou bunker is 13ft underneath the magnificent Perthshire countryside and comes complete with a “bespoke” hatch.
Offering the ultimate retreat in a quiet rural location, the 1950s era listening post is a steal at just £20,000.
Although officially listed as a “house” by the sellers, any buyer will have to be resilient and certainly not claustrophobic.
The living space measures just 2m (7ft) by 5m (16ft) and lacks mains electricity and running water. A chemical toilet is the closest it gets to boasting mod cons.
During the Cold War, military top brass constructed underground “listening posts” all over the UK.
They were to be used by military personnel to provide the dreaded “four minute warning” in the event of a nuclear armageddon.
If an attack was launched, the occupants of the post would attempt to detect incoming missiles, send out early warnings, and feed information back to central command.
After the cold war ended most of the listening posts were left derelict or destroyed.
The example for sale, near the affluent village of Comrie, features two sets of bunk beds as well as a wood-fired stove into the tiny space.
The sale also includes a modest parking space next to the property’s entrance – a heavy “bespoke” metal hatch door, which opens onto a 4m (13ft) vertical shaft and ladder.
And it comes with a whole host of extraordinary original features from its time on the front line of the cold war.
These include the original log book used by the monitoring staff and the mount of the “Blast Power Indicator” used to measure the size of nuclear blasts ravaging the ground above.
It also includes a “WB1401 Warning Receiver” – which would sound in the event of a nuclear attack or incoming fallout from a blast elsewhere.
The WB1401 system was connected to air attack sirens, designed to give the notorious “four minute warning” for people to take cover before the missiles hit.
The tiny space may be brimming with history, but it is rather short of basic amenities.
Aside from the main chamber the only other space is a “small subsidiary chamber” – which estate agents say is “suited to development into a washroom facility.”
Besides this it comes with a sink, bookcase, chair, folding tables and a new chemical toilet.
Alastair Houlden – who is managing the sale for sellers Rettie – said: “The bunker offers a piece of affordable real estate in an absolutely charming part of rural Perthshire.
“Our client has used the former listening post for holiday accommodation as it makes for a very secure lock up and leave.
“I can foresee it being acquired for a similar purpose or by an enthusiast collector of cold war history.
“Alternatively, it would make a great gift the person who has everything or as an insurance policy against the unthinkable’.
Rettie are holding a viewing of the property for prospective buyers on February 7 and 14, but Mr Houlden admitted that owing to the size of the bunker: “It will be literally one in, one out.”
Nuclear-proof properties have come on the market before in Scotland.
In 2014 a £200,000 bunker near the same spot in Perthshire came on the market.
But the property was more of a mansion than a bachelor pad – coming with its own hospital, canteen and accommodation for 150 people.
And in 2013 a former nuclear command centre bunker in Inverbervie, Aberdeenshire came on the market – with nearly 100sqm (10,000 sq ft) of underground space.
