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Latitude: 50.6783 / 50°40'41"N
Longitude: -2.2191 / 2°13'8"W
OS Eastings: 384614
OS Northings: 86541
OS Grid: SY846865
Mapcode National: GBR 21J.9S3
Mapcode Global: FRA 6778.WVR
Plus Code: 9C2VMQHJ+89
Entry Name: K6 telephone kiosk, Wool
Listing Date: 13 February 2018
Grade: II
Source: Historic England
Source ID: 1454418
ID on this website: 101454418
Location: Wool, Dorset, BH20
County: Dorset
Civil Parish: Wool
Built-Up Area: Wool
Traditional County: Dorset
Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Dorset
Tagged with: Telephone booth
A K6 telephone kiosk.
A K6 telephone kiosk.
The K6 is a standardised design made of cast iron, painted red overall with long horizontal glazing in 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*. The kiosk appears intact, though the display signs are a little faded. It has modern telecommunications equipment inside*. It stands on the main street through the village, in a prominent position. The kiosk stands on the opposite side of the road from the listed Burvan House, 23 and 24 High Street, formerly the post office (Grade II, NHLE 1120372); and the listed Colliers Barn, 1 & 2 High Street (Grade II, NHLE1152927). The telephone kiosk has a strong visual relationship with these two listed buildings collectively, and in addition is within the Wool Conservation Area.
* Pursuant to s.1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that these aforementioned features - the modern telecommunications equipment - are not of special architectural or historic interest.
The K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design. The K6 was designed by Sir 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. Sir 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.
The K6 kiosk in Wool is listed at Grade II, for the following principal reasons:
Architectural interest:
* the K6 kiosk is recognised as an iconic design which is of intrinsic interest;
* it appears largely unaltered;
Group value:
* this telephone kiosk has a strong visual relationship with two listed buildings collectively, one of which is the former post office.
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.
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