K6 Telephone Kiosk

SOUTHWELL

1919/0/10004 MAYTHORNE MILL 14-DEC-10 Maythorne K6 Telephone Kiosk

GV II K6 telephone kiosk

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. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. It has modernised internal equipment. The red paint is flaking only slightly along the bottom edge of the kiosk and it retains all its glass windows. The kiosk is located within a late C18 mill complex built for cotton and silk spinning. It stands directly in front of a row of five Grade II listed cottages, opposite the Grade II listed former manager's house, and within the immediate setting of two converted mills and a row of three cottages, all Grade II listed. It forms a strong visual relationship with these five listed buildings amongst which it has a prominent position.

HISTORY: 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 far plainer kiosk types, but many still remain, and continue to be an iconic feature on Britain's streetscapes.

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION The K6 telephone kiosk in Maythorne is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons: * Design: it is an iconic C20 industrial design by Giles Gilbert Scott * Group Value: it has a close visual relationship with five listed buildings.