A group of taxi drivers who have been studying for their Cab Guide Badge recently had a private tour of the Cabinet War Rooms, the bunker from which Churchill and his Cabinet ran the country during the Second World War. The tour allowed them privileged access to the key rooms of the Museum. The group went into the Cabinet Room, which has been perfectly preserved since 1945. It was in the Cabinet Room that Churchill announced ‘This is the room from which I will direct the War.’ Operations Manager, Gerry McCartney, also took the group into the Map Room, which was the central hub of operations throughout the Second World War. In the room they got to see close up the thousands of pin pricks in the maps showing where all the convoys had been as well as the sugar ration discovered hidden away in a drawer when the Cabinet War Rooms were prepared to open to the public in 1984. The group walked down the dimly lit corridors soaking up the atmosphere, imagining the cramped conditions and long hours in which the staff had worked.
Paul Playle from the Education Committee of The Worshipful Company of Hackney Carriage Drivers said: “For a while there was a war on but everyone when emerging into the daylight again must have been appreciative of all who made things happen for the better”. The group were certainly appreciative of Gerry McCartney for such a good tour and Melody Allen of the Museum for organising it.
The Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms is open daily from 9.30am until 6.00pm (last admission 5.00pm) for entry fees or details on booking private
tours visit their website: www.iwm.org.uk/cabinet.
Are you interested in becoming a Tour Guide? For details on the next course contact course co-ordinator Graham Woodhouse on 07968 791 117, or e-mail him on info@cabguide.com for further details.