A COLD War bunker sounds just the place to sit out a heatwave.

The shelter in Acomb Road, York, is to be turned into the city's newest museum. It was built in the 1906s to withstand a nuclear explosion and allow survivors to monitor conditions after an attack.

Thankfully, the shelter was never needed - and so stands as a pristine relic to a war that never was. York has a tremendous variety of museums, and this latest example adds a local angle to an important phase in international history.

Updated: 10:57 Tuesday, August 05, 2003