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A property in Tilehurst, Reading, featuring a family-built underground network more than 15 metres below ground, is being offered at auction with a guide price of £300,000 to £325,000. The site also includes a workshop, swimming pool and planning consent for new homes; the tunnels’ future use and the final sale price are not yet known.
A house and workshop site in Tilehurst, Reading, with a hand-dug underground network extending more than 15 metres below ground, is being offered at auction with a guide price of £300,000 to £325,000. The property includes more than 1,300 square feet of tunnels and underground rooms, and is scheduled for BTG Eddisons Property Auctions’ livestream sale on October 28-29, according to the Reading Chronicle.
Civil engineer Tony Deane built the subterranean complex beneath a workshop over about two decades, working largely by hand during the 1980s and 1990s. The network descends through four levels and contains tunnels, storage rooms and a railway used to move excavated chalk. Deane’s six children also helped with the work, the report said.
The underground area has several unusual features, including a one-tonne goods lift and two concealed doors. One is described as a 1.5-tonne sliding concrete wall. A room’s hidden entrance is inside a rocket beside the swimming pool; the 23-foot-high rocket remains on the property. The family’s underground projects began earlier, in the 1960s, with changing rooms built next to the pool.
The wider site is accessed by a gated driveway and includes a 2,500-square-foot workshop arranged over three floors, parking, gardens, the pool and changing rooms. West Berkshire Council granted planning consent in December 2024 for a two-storey, five-bedroom house on the pool site. The workshop also has consent for conversion into a three-bedroom house, the report said.
A Tunnels-Plus-Development Sale
The listing combines an unusual underground structure with development potential, making it relevant to buyers weighing the property’s existing features against its permitted uses. The guide price covers the site as offered; it does not establish what a buyer would pay to maintain, adapt or insure the tunnels.
Auctioneer and consultant Richard Worrall said the complex might interest buyers considering secure storage or other specialist uses. He also mentioned possibilities such as a fallout shelter or data centre, but those are suggestions, not approved uses or confirmed plans. Any eventual use would depend on the property’s condition, applicable requirements and a buyer’s proposals.
underground tunnel inspection camera
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How the Underground Network Was Built
The Reading Chronicle reported that Deane began the main tunnelling work in the 1980s and 1990s, drawing on his civil engineering background and earlier work on aerodrome and airport infrastructure. The family used buckets and wheelbarrows to excavate and move chalk, according to the report. A small railway and lift were also constructed to carry material through and out of the site.
Worrall said most of the tunnels were cut through chalk, which he described as naturally self-supporting, with concrete used in some places. The report said the network remained largely unknown beyond the family for decades. It did not provide engineering surveys or an independent assessment of the tunnels’ present condition.
“In all my years as an auctioneer, I’ve never seen anything like this before — it’s utterly amazing and, I think, unique.”
— Richard Worrall, auctioneer and consultant at BTG Eddisons Property Auctions
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Condition, Uses and Sale Price
The listing’s guide price is not a confirmed sale price, and the source report does not say whether the property has sold. It also does not give details of offers, buyer interest or the auction outcome. Although planning consent is reported for two residential projects, the report does not set out the permissions’ conditions or timelines.
There is no independent structural survey, detailed safety assessment or cost estimate for the underground network in the supplied information. Its present condition, maintenance needs, insurance position and suitability for any proposed use remain unclear. Worrall’s suggestions about storage, shelter or a data centre should not be treated as planning approval or technical findings.
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Auction and Buyer Due Diligence
BTG Eddisons Property Auctions listed the property for a livestream auction on October 28-29, with further details and bidding information directed to the auctioneer’s website. The supplied report does not specify the auction year, so the current sale status should be checked with the auctioneer.
Prospective bidders would need to review the auction pack, planning documents and relevant professional assessments before deciding what the tunnels and buildings could support. The eventual winning bid, any sale conditions and the buyer’s intended plans are not reported in the source material.
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Key Questions
Where is the property?
It is in Tilehurst, Reading, beneath a workshop in a residential suburb.
How much is the property guide-priced at?
The reported guide price is £300,000 to £325,000. That is an auction guide, not a confirmed final sale price.
How extensive are the underground tunnels?
The network reportedly has more than 1,300 square feet of underground space, descends through four levels and reaches more than 15 metres below ground.
What planning consent does the site have?
The report says West Berkshire Council granted consent in December 2024 for a two-storey, five-bedroom house on the swimming pool site. It also reports consent to convert the workshop into a three-bedroom house.
Has the property sold, and are the tunnels safe to use?
The supplied report does not confirm a sale or provide an independent assessment of the tunnels’ condition or safety. Those details would need to be verified with the auctioneer and through appropriate professional inspections.
Source: hn
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