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Corstorphine & Wright is pleased to announce the completion of ‘The Bunker’

By Jonny Plant – 14th July 2023

This former WW2 bunker on the Dorset coast, once part of the ‘Chain Home’ radar system, has been transformed into an inconspicuous yet luxurious holiday home.

Located on a working dairy farm within the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, this forgotten historical artefact has been brought back into use, recently opening its doors to guests.

The brief was to celebrate the enormous historical significance of the structure whilst ensuring a habitable and commercially viable space for the client.

The design for the bunker is deeply rooted in the structure’s history and retains as much of the original fabric and ‘feel’ of the space as possible. The entrance to the Bunker remains as it was, whilst a new ‘bomb blast’ opening in the existing fabric allows natural light into the space, as well as breathtaking sea views across Ringstead Bay. The bunker otherwise remains submerged in the landscape, as it was originally designed to be.

“Despite several intricate, technical challenges, this project reveals and celebrates an important piece of wartime history, and we are delighted to have brought it back into long-term use for our client. One of the key things for us as designers was to tell the story of the bunker. Had we plastered and painted the walls, installed standard fittings and timber floors, all sense of the original building would have been lost. Instead, we worked with the fabric of the building as we discovered it. It is imperative that when you stay in the bunker, you are aware that you are staying in a bunker, not any other holiday home and that you are experiencing history. I think we can confidently say this has been achieved and we are all very proud of the result.”

Jonny Plant

Director