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The underground rivers, tunnels, shelters, mines and subterranean spaces of Manchester lie just inches from our feet – but remain unseen.

Everything from nuclear bunkers to the Joy Division master tapes have been discovered just below the surface of the city.

Thousands of people tread the tarmac and cobbles above Manchester’s hidden underground world every day, but even the proudest of Mancunians could be forgiven for not knowing it was there.

Fascinated by this hidden world, Mark Crossfield has spent six years researching and developing a comprehensive underground map of the city.

Mark, from Chorlton, said his interest started as a hobby and developed into an obsession which has captured his imagination for years.

It took the software developer – who previously worked in the IT department at the Manchester Evening News – around four months to design and create the comprehensive Hidden Manchester map.

He said: “If you scratch the surface just a little bit there’s a whole new world.

“I used to work at the M.E.N back when there was a cable fire in one of the tunnels in Manchester. There was some talk about where the fire would have been and that sparked my interest in underground Manchester.

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“I started to pick up bits of information here and there. I found an online forum full of various rumours about the various underground features and it turned into a hobby, or perhaps a bad habit.”

The map includes details and pictures of all sorts of underground features, including the cemetery below Victoria Station, the Piccadilly air raid shelter and the vault at Jamie’s Italian – where the Joy Division master tapes were allegedly discovered.

Mark's Hidden Manchester map can be viewed at hidden-manchester.org.uk

But Mark says his biggest fascination lies with the Guardian Telephone Exchange, a 1950s nuclear bunker designed to safeguard cold war communications. When built, it was such a secret that it was classified under a ‘D Notice’ to prevent the media from writing about it.

Mark said: “It’s probably my favourite because there’s an element of subterfuge about it.

“The Victoria arches area around the cathedral is very interesting too. That whole area and Victoria Station - there are so many levels and layers of history. The Victorians built on top of the old city.”

Here are some of the subterranean features:

SKITTLE ALLEY AND TUNNEL, NEW CATHEDRAL ST

Beneath Marks and Spencers were once cellars and passages dating back centuries. The tunnel connected up to various parts of the old market place and was at times used as an underground skittle alley, while Goulburn’s food shop used the tunnel space as a cheese store.

VICTORIA STATION AND THE VICTORIA ARCHES

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Human remains in the former Walker’s Croft burial ground under Manchester Victoria station were exhumed when Victoria Station was redeveloped. Hundreds of poor families were buried under the rail platforms and buildings, many having fallen victim to Victorian cholera epidemics. Walker’s Croft was once linked to a nearby Victorian workhouse, and the Victoria Arches were used as an air raid shelter during the Second World War.

BANK CHAMBERS OFF PORTLAND STREET

This imposing bomb-proof building is said to be one of the safest in the city and was used to store gold bullion by the Bank of England until the 1990s. Every Tuesday the surrounding roads would be temporarily closed so money could be transported. A 16-inch exterior wall of concrete stands in front of a small gap before the interior wall begins. This was to allow patrol dogs to pace the perimeter walls.

GASKELL’S UNDERGROUND SWIMMING POOL

Between the 1930s and 1960s, Manchester had an underground sauna and heated swimming pool. Adjacent to the BBC’s Oxford Road headquarters, it was run by the Gaskell family. The pool opened in 1930 with swimming lessons given in ‘warmth, comfort and privacy’ by Mrs Ada Frances Gaskell herself.

CRYPT UNDER WG PONTER

This vaulted crypt underneath 22 Old Millgate is buried 30 feet below street level and can be accessed through a cellar.

Brave Mancunians were offered the chance to view the crypt in an advert printed in the Manchester Guardian in 1903.

A piece printed in the paper describes the crypt as ‘a cellar of curious construction’. It reads: “Its appearance strongly suggests a crypt, but there is very little to support the theory that the place was ever a crypt. From the evidence of the brickwork it seems unlikely that it is older than the beginning of the 18th century. It is interesting to remember that it was close to this spot, if not upon it, that the house stood of John Byrom, the 18th-century Manchester poet. The site of Byrom’s house is accurately known, but it has not yet been ascertained whether the chamber is beneath it.” Researchers have later found that Byrom's house was not directly above the tunnel.

HSBC VAULT

Now home to Hotel Gotham, this impressive building on King Street was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.

When the restaurant opened in 2012, the underground vault was preserved as a basement dining room, while the downstairs toilets were created from safety deposit box inspection rooms. All sorts of things are rumoured to have been found in the safety deposit boxes, including a gun, a £1 million stash of jewellery and Joy Division’s master tapes.

MANCHESTER PICCADILLY AIR RAID SHELTER

Below Manchester Piccadilly is an old air raid shelter, capable of holding 1,275 people.

The Hidden Manchester map can be viewed at hidden-manchester.org.uk