Still worried about nuclear oblivion? MoD bunker for sale: pounds 100,0 00, pleasant location

Paranoiacs who believe that the likelihood of nuclear oblivion persists despite the end of the Cold War have only a few more days to get in a bid for one of the most bomb-proof properties ever to come on the market.

The Ministry of Defence is selling a 25-room underground bunker set in 26 acres of hilltop overlooking the Aberdeenshire coast. Built in 1952 and fenced in with barbed wire, it appears to have been intended for use as a command post in the event of a nuclear war.

With an inscrutability worthy of the Cold War, the MoD will say only that it was "an emergency communications centre". However, the 328ft-inclined tunnel that leads into the hillside from a dummy lodge before reaching the heart of the facility suggests a pretty serious emergency was being catered for.

The 9,000sq ft bunker has bedrooms marked for all three services, dining rooms, a kitchen and a huge two-storey operations room. The surface "lodge" has been given a rural appearance. Stone-built, it has a slate roof and full-length veranda. However, the chain-link fence topped with barbed wire rather spoils the disguise.

David MacLeod, of Ryden International Property Consultants, who is handling the sale, expects offers to exceed pounds 100,000 although he concedes that the bunker is a bit of an unknown quality. He expects a closing date for bids to be set in about 10 days. "We have had several people indicate they are going to bid but with a thing like this you are never sure how it is going to go," he said.

The site is above the former fishing village of Inverbervie, now a commuter dormitory for Aberdeen. The most valuable part of the property is probably the 26-acres of farmland and a radio mast leased to Aberdeenshire Council also brings in pounds 5,000 a year

While it is thought that planning permission could be secured to turn the dummy lodge into a real home, living in the bunker itself would be impractical. Nor is consent likely for any more housing on the land. Storage and a tourist attraction are among uses being considered by potential purchasers.

Visitors have been struck by how cold and airless the bunker is. A sign points to an "emergency exit" although if the subterranean command post had ever been used in earnest it is hard to imagine anyone wanting to make a dash for the nuclear wasteland above.