Simon Marks, 37, thought he had simply driven onto a flowerbed when his car suddenly became stuck in a hole. Frustrated at the sight of the damage, he sighed, thinking, “Well, this day couldn’t get any worse.”
But as he went to inspect the problem, a strange cracking sound made his heart race. What on earth was happening?
Kneeling down, Simon noticed the pavers on his driveway splitting apart. To his shock, the ground beneath him began to cave in. The dirt crumbled away, revealing something metallic below the surface.
Using his hands, Simon tried to uncover the object, tugging at it with all his strength, but it wouldn’t budge. Determined to solve the mystery, he called for backup. His father soon arrived, and together they dug through buckets of thick, packed mud.
Eventually, their efforts revealed a hidden entrance. With the help of a rusty old ladder, they climbed down into what looked like a buried structure.
“My dad saw it straight away and said, ‘It’s an air raid shelter,’” Simon explained. “We looked it up and found there are quite a few in this area.”
Further research confirmed their hunch: the underground space had been built during World War II. Simon believes the home’s previous owner knew about it and likely filled it in while landscaping the garden.
During the war, Sir John Anderson was tasked with creating safe havens for civilians during bombings—structures now known as Anderson shelters.
Inside Simon’s find, one wall had been sealed off. “I’m about 90 percent sure there aren’t any more rooms beyond it, but we can’t say for certain,” he told reporters. “It might have been bricked up when the house was built for the foundations. If that’s the case, we’ll just have to leave it.”
News of the discovery quickly went viral, sparking fascination among history enthusiasts. Simon and his father now hope to restore the shelter and preserve it for future generations.
“We don’t want this piece of history to be forgotten,” Simon said. “Even though the war is long past, this shelter is a reminder of what people went through. One day, we’d love for it to be recognized as a historic site.”
A remarkable glimpse into the past, hidden for decades right under a driveway, is now set to become a living memory of resilience and survival.
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