Originally Posted by
Pontius Navigator
I don't doubt what Peter Hennessey found in the Archives but I wonder if it was founded on ignorance and secrecy. On the Ops Desk at Waddington was a black telephone. It had no dial, and as far as we knew, no purpose. It never rang; we never used it. The number was Lincoln Sub Trunk 2. We decided to try it. One day I rang the operator, asked for the number, moments later it was picked up on the Ops Desk. It was obviously a super efficient network but one of which we mere cannon fodder were ignorant. Maybe that was what i t was intended for.
That would be a connection to the Emergency Manual Switching System (EMSS). See
UK Emergency Manual Switching System All BBC transmitter sites were connected to the EMSS, as were the TOMs at Broadcasting House and Bush House. .