‘In the event of invasion, the tunnel would be blown up’
Andrew Clarke remembers a supposed plan to protect part of Maidstone from falling into enemy hands during the Second World War.
Mr Clark, who lives off The Grove, Bearsted, said: “As a schoolboy (Hill Place Prep, off Queens Avenue) and lifelong friend of the late Norman Harlow, I have memories of the Victoria Hotel dating back to the mid-1940s.
“Norman’s dad, Dave, and his mother moved there from the Ruby Lounge in Margate following the 1940 bombing. I well remember the cosy snug bar down a step to the left of the main entrance.
“There were parties with school friends held in the splendid first floor dining room. Everything would stop in the early evening to listen to Dick Barton: Special Agent on the wireless, featuring Dick, Jock and Snowy. On the landing the polished wooden bannister on the stairs running through the building was a great temptation for an exciting slide. In the yard outside behind the hotel, Dave kept bantams. Norman and I built camps against the booking office wall. Dave garaged his pre-war car at the garage opposite which later became the site of the KM print works.
“Norman also told me during the Second World War his dad had a pistol, probably connected with the cloak and dagger side of Home Guard duties. The story was there were plans that in the event of a German invasion, the cellar floor would be excavated and an explosive charge placed to demolish the Maidstone East tunnel beneath the hotel. During the 1940s the most regular guests would have been commercial travellers using the Victoria line. However Norman also told of a lady guest who was arrested on suspicion of being a German spy, but nothing more is known.
“As an old Maidstonian, it is sad to see how the splendid old Victoria Hotel has deteriorated over the years. I recall in the mid-1960s the upstairs rooms were somewhat crudely converted into apartments. The name change to the Vic was certainly a come down.”
Mr Clarke, 79, sent us a photograph of the Cycling Tourists Club sign, which used to hang on the pub’s corner, taken in October 2006. It has since disappeared.