Description

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 11/05/2020

798-1/0/10392

Bloomsbury
MONTAGUE STREET (west side)
Pair of K6 telephone kiosks flanking side entrance piers and gates

01-FEB-11

II
Pair of K6 telephone kiosks.

MATERIALS: cast iron and glass (except where later modified).

DESCRIPTION: The K6 is a standardised design made of cast iron, painted red overall with long horizontal glazing in the door and sides and with the crowns situated on the top panels being applied not perforated. Both kiosks have rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. They have modernised internal equipment.

This pair of K6 telephone kiosks flanks entrance piers and gates to the British Museum's eastern facade on Montague Street. On the opposite side of Montague Street are Nos. 12-19 (listed Grade II) and the iron gates between Nos. 20 and 21 (also listed Grade II). No. 30 (listed Grade II), is adjacent to the K6 telephone kiosks on the west side of Montague Street, 30m to the north. The British Museum is listed Grade I.

HISTORY: the K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design. The K6 was designed by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 for the General Post Office, on the occasion of King George V's Silver Jubilee. The K6 was a development from his earlier highly successful K2 telephone kiosk design of 1924, of Neo-classical inspiration. The K6 was more streamlined aesthetically, more compact and more cost-effective to mass produce. Giles Gilbert Scott (1880-1960) was one of the most important of modern British architects; his many celebrated commissions include the Anglican cathedral of Liverpool and Battersea power station. The K2 and K6 telephone kiosks can be said to represent a very thoughtful adaptation of architectural tradition to contemporary technological requirements. Well over 70,000 K6s were eventually produced. In the 1960s many were replaced with far plainer kiosk types. But many still remain, and continue to be an iconic feature on Britain's streetscapes.

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION:
The pair of K6 telephone kiosks, flanking side entrance piers and gates, on the west side of Montague Street are designated at Grade II for the principal following reasons:
* Special design interest: designed by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935, the K6 is a major landmark of industrial design.
* Group value: this pair of telephone kiosks stand on the eastern side of the British Museum, a Grade I listed building, and have a strong visual relationship with three additional listed buildings.

Reasons for Listing

The pair of K6 telephone kiosks, flanking side entrance piers and gates, on the west side of Montague Street were recommended for designation at Grade II for the principal following reasons:
* Special design interest: designed by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935, the K6 is a major landmark of industrial design.
* Group value: this pair of telephone kiosks stand on the eastern side of the British Museum, a Grade I listed building, and have a strong visual relationship with three additional listed buildings.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q27087433

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Liverpool: Pevsner City Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)
• 
  A Buying and Owning a Listed Building: A Brief Guide
• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pevsner's Architectural Glossary (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas