80th anniversary of Colossus digital computer celebrated at Bletchley Park heritage site.
Milton Keynes’ most famous wartime historical centre has been honoured in a special commemoration to mark 80 years of the famous Colossus code breaking machine.
The National Museum of Computing (TNMOC) marked the anniversary year with the unveiling of a prestigious World Origin Site plaque, in Block H of Bletchley Park, the only surviving building where Colossus machines were deployed during World War II.
The plaque was unveiled by Alan Bealby, Chairman of the Post Office Remembrance Fellowship, honouring the crucial role of General Post Office (GPO) engineers in Colossus’ creation. The engineers built Colossus to break the wartime German Lorenz cipher, contributing significantly to the shortening of war.
Despite its historical importance, the story of Colossus was hidden from the public for over 30 years, classified under the Government's Official Secrets Act. After the war, Winston Churchill ordered all Colossus machines to be destroyed, and their existence was buried in secrecy.
After decades of obscurity, fragments and files that survived were brought together for the reconstruction of Colossus at TNMOC in 2007. A Colossus still operates at the museum, on the spot where Colossus No.9 ran during the war.
“This World Origin Site certification firmly establishes Colossus as a true world first in the history of computing,” said Jacqui Garrad, Museum Director at TNMOC. “Not only do we have a working reconstruction at TNMOC, but the fact that it is still here, on the very site where Colossus No.9 operated, makes this a landmark story. An absolute world first in so many ways.
“The World Origin Site plaque strengthens our ability to share this remarkable story for decades to come.”
