Nottingham's caves get virtual reality treatment

The new virtual reality tour shows what lies beneath Nottingham's surface

Nottingham's network of caves has been turned into a virtual reality tour, to open them up to a wider audience.

The caves have been digitally reproduced as part of the city's first Festival of Caves.

The tour will take in Mortimer's Hole under Nottingham Castle and King David's Dungeon - caves some people would not be able to access.

The city has more than 500 man-made sandstone caves which have been used for dwellings and jail cells.

Nottingham City councillor, Dave Trimble, said: "There are plenty of local people who don't know about the hidden world beneath their feet."

He said the new virtual reality tour would allow visitors who were unable to descend the steep steps into the caves to experience them.

The first festival of Caves runs until 23 October

Andrew Whitney of Hot Knife Digital Media, which developed the tour, said: "We've taken very accurate data to digitally reproduce the caves in a gaming environment.

"We're excited to bring the caves into the 21st Century using the latest gaming and virtual reality technology, increasing the accessibility of these sites to everyone."

A series of caves has been found in the past six years due to funded projects such the Nottingham Caves Survey, which mapped and laser-scanned many of them.

The festival runs until 23 October.

What lies beneath...

Caves are everywhere in Nottingham and some of them have become popular tourist destinations

• Some of Nottingham's caves appear to date back to the 9th Century

• A Welsh monk named Asser referred to Nottingham as Tig Guocobauc, which means "house" or "place of caves"

• Cave dwelling has been a part of the city's history, particularly during the Industrial Revolution when homes were scarce

• Some caves were used as tanneries, secret hideouts and World War Two air raid shelters

• Caves are used to keep ale at a consistent cool temperature at some pubs in the city