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A property in Tilehurst, Reading, featuring a hand-dug underground network that descends more than 15 metres, is being offered at auction with a guide price of £300,000 to £325,000. The complex includes tunnels, storage rooms, a railway and a goods lift; the auction was scheduled for October 28–29, according to the Reading Chronicle report.
A house and workshop in Tilehurst, Reading, with an underground network extending more than 15 metres below ground, has been listed for auction with a guide price of £300,000 to £325,000. The property’s unusual feature is a complex of hand-dug rooms and corridors built by owner Tony Deane and his family over several decades, according to the Reading Chronicle.
The subterranean complex contains more than 1,300 square feet of space across four levels, including tunnels and storage rooms. Features reported include a hand-built railway for moving excavated chalk, a four-layer goods lift with a capacity of one tonne, and two concealed doors. One is described as a sliding concrete wall weighing 1.5 tonnes. A room has a hidden entrance inside a rocket beside the swimming pool.
Deane, a civil engineer whose earlier work included construction connected to aerodromes and airports, began digging beneath the property during the 1980s and 1990s. His six children helped with the work. The Chronicle reported that the family used buckets and wheelbarrows to excavate and move chalk, and that the project followed earlier underground construction in the 1960s, when changing rooms were built beside the pool.
The above-ground property includes a 2,500-square-foot workshop arranged over three floors, parking, gardens, a large swimming pool and changing rooms. The report says planning consent was granted by West Berkshire Council in December 2024 for a 5,000-square-foot, five-bedroom, two-storey house on the swimming pool site. It also says the workshop has consent for conversion into a three-bedroom house.
A Rare Property With Multiple Uses
The sale combines a residential property with an extensive underground structure and existing development permissions, giving prospective buyers more to assess than a conventional house purchase. The tunnels may attract buyers seeking unusual storage or workspace, while the pool-site and workshop permissions could affect plans for redevelopment. Those permissions do not, by themselves, establish that any particular construction project has begun or will proceed.
Auctioneer and consultant Richard Worrall of BTG Eddisons suggested possible uses for the subterranean space, including secure storage and a data centre. Those are his examples of potential uses, not confirmed plans for the site. A buyer would need to establish what uses are feasible and what approvals or technical checks would apply.
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How the Underground Network Was Built
The complex is reported to have remained largely unknown outside the Deane family while it was being built beneath a workshop in a residential part of Tilehurst. Much of the digging was through chalk, which Worrall said can support itself naturally. He also said concrete was used in some areas where required and cast by hand.
The project was a family effort carried out over decades, rather than a standard construction development. The auction listing brings attention to both the scale of the underground rooms and the practical details of the wider site. The source report describes the property as accessed through a secure gated driveway and notes the auction was due to be held as a live-stream sale on October 28 and 29.
“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
Condition and Permitted Uses Need Checking
The report does not provide an independent engineering assessment of the tunnels, their current condition, maintenance needs or suitability for regular use. It also does not detail the scope, conditions or expiry dates of the planning consents. These matters would need to be checked by prospective buyers against the auction particulars and relevant authorities.
The source gives a guide price rather than a confirmed sale price, and does not say whether the property has since sold. It also does not specify the year of the October 28–29 auction. Worrall’s suggestions for uses such as a fallout shelter or data centre are possibilities he raised, not verified capabilities or approved plans.
Auction Details and Buyer Due Diligence
BTG Eddisons Property Auctions was listed as the auctioneer, with the property scheduled for its live-stream auction on October 28–29. Interested buyers would need to consult the auction house for the current listing, bidding requirements and property documents, particularly because the source report does not identify the auction year or confirm the sale’s outcome.
Any buyer considering redevelopment or a specialist use for the underground space would need to review the planning records and obtain suitable professional advice on the structure and proposed use. The next confirmed milestone in the source material is the scheduled auction; no later sale result or construction plan is provided.
Key Questions
Where is the property?
It is in Tilehurst, Reading, according to the Reading Chronicle report.
What is the guide price?
The reported guide price is £300,000 to £325,000. A guide price is not a confirmed final sale price.
How large is the underground complex?
The report describes more than 1,300 square feet of underground rooms and corridors, descending through four levels to more than 15 metres below ground.
What features are inside the tunnels?
Reported features include a hand-built railway, a one-tonne goods lift, storage rooms and concealed doors, including a sliding concrete wall. The report does not provide an independent condition assessment.
Has the property sold?
The supplied report gives an auction date of October 28–29 but does not state the year or confirm whether a sale took place.
Source: hn
