Shadow Dragon

Blue Circle Concrete Offices

August 2021 | England | Extant

Note – this site is owned by the Ministry of Defence as of 2026. Trespass on this site is a CRIMINAL OFFENCE, so for your own good DO NOT GO HERE otherwise you will be trespassing on MOD property and a nuclear licensed site.

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These offices make up part of a larger complex of former headquarters buildings, in a former country estate. Sadly, the whole site is abandoned and derelict, with all the buildings decaying slowly. These offices are a very grand and imposing set, built in the mid-1980s and designed by a rather famous architect by the name of Richard Gilbert Scott, the great grandson of Sir George Gilbert Scott, who hailed from a long family line of architects stretching back to the 19^th century. They have had many uses over the years, ranging from headquarters for a concrete company to a computer IT company. The build is impressive, built of huge cast concrete blocks all slotted into each other like a jigsaw puzzle. From the outside, the building is a hulking, brooding mass but once you’re inside it is surprisingly spacious and cavernous, especially the large foyers! Later on in 2024, the building was used as a filming location for the incredible film ‘Project Hail Mary’ as the NASA offices where Grace is told he’s going into space to save mankind.

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THE EXPLORE: so, the exploration was rather fun. I arrived at the site and found my way inside pretty quickly and was met with a motion sensor which I managed to avoid. The entire interior is littered with the bloody things – they’re everywhere! I had a very hard time navigating the inside to avoid them, but eventually, I set one off. And then after setting them off, I just threw caution to the wind and walked through the place as if I owned it. The interior layout was confusing as anything because stairs and passageways led off in every direction. It was hard to stay coordinated! However, after an hour and a half, I heard sirens on the roads. I didn’t think those were for me, but, they were, as ten minutes later, when I finished photographing the boiler room, I heard radio chatter. Police!!! I hid for a few minutes and contemplated making a break for it, but when looking down the huge underground car park tunnel, I could see torches at the far end… my end of the tunnel was blocked off by a grill. So, I gave myself up. Turns out, six cars and twelve officers had rocked up. So much for being understaffed, under-resourced and all that they claim! However, they were amicable and once they realised that I wasn’t a burglar (almost instantly) they were chatty and friendly. I was escorted off site and that was that.

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