Summary

A pair of K6 telephone kiosks.

Description

A pair of K6 telephone kiosks, designed by Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935.

MATERIALS: Cast iron with glazes.

EXTERIOR: 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. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. It has modernised internal equipment. There are four listed buildings within the vicinity of the kiosks namely numbers 137 and 139 High Street which lie immediately to the north-west, the library 143 which lies due west on the opposite side of the High Street, and The White Hart public house, which lies due south.

History

The K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design. It 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 a new kiosk type. But many still remain, and continue to be an iconic feature on Britain's streetscapes.

Reasons for Listing

The pair of K6-type telephone kiosks outside 136 High Street, Billericay, Essex are designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: they are an iconic industrial design of the C20 by Giles Gilbert Scott;
* Group Value: they have a strong visual relationship with more than one listed building.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26675570

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

• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  For the Record
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects by Harwood, Richard (2012) Paperback
• 
  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990