The importance of saving Bletchley Park

By: Nigel Stanley, Practice Leader - IT Security, Bloor Research
Published: 25th July 2008
Copyright Bloor Research © 2008

Bletchley Park, the home of the WW2 code breakers, has been in the news over the past couple of days as a group of notables have written to The Times complaining about the state of the historical site.

I for one, with a keen interest in cryptography, electronics and radio, had the pleasure of visiting the site whilst on business a couple of months ago. Touring the various huts and getting the story of Bletchley Park brought to life by a guide was awe inspiring as was the demonstration of the early electro mechanical computers that helped bring forward the end of the war by 2 years.

Unfortunately it would seem that those that hold the purse strings are more interested in funding a 2 week running and jumping festival for a bunch of obsessive's in 4 years time than celebrating our magnificent heritage at Bletchley Park.

I heartily recommend that anyone with an interest in real history visits Bletchley Park and helps us retain this remarkable site. Full details can be found on the Bletchley Park web site http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/ I have no connection to the place other than a passion to see it supported into the future.

Reader Comments

Posted: 27th July 2008 | By Philip Howard :

I agree with your sentiments about the restoration of Bletchley Park but I don't think you do your cause any good by insulting sports fans as obsessives. In fact, how you fund restoration has as little to do with the Olympics as the Stonehenge bypass has with the NHS.

Posted: 28th July 2008 | By Nigel Stanley :

My issue is not with the fans, rather the £9bn - £12bn being spent by the government so that obsessive *competitors* can run and jump. Surely this money is far better spent on projects such as Bletchley Park which have a long lasting historical value. Throw in some after school clubs for our disaffected youth and you have much better value for your money. Still, way off topic now...

Posted: 30th July 2008 | By Peter Dzwig :

I don't know what the sum involved is, presumably at the most GBP 10M, perhaps GBP 20M. That is a drop in the ocean compared with other expenditure on both the NHS and the Olympics. In the case of the latter much of the money, certainly more than GBP10m will be written off. Surely creating a museum and centre of excellence at Bletchley Park has to represent a much better long term investment.

Perhaps had the Official Secrets Act been so strictly enforced vis-a-vis Bletchley we would have known its true value earlier and established a museum fitting the technological achievements of its members long before now.

Posted: 1st August 2008 | By Peter Dzwig :

Corrigendum to my note. That shoude have said, "had the Official Secrets Act NOT been so strictly enforced..." ;-)

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