K6 Telephone Kiosk, Adjacent To Boundary Railings And Gates

798-1/0/10397 RUSSELL SQUARE 01-FEB-11 Bloomsbury (Northwest side) K6 telephone kiosk, adjacent to bounda ry railings and gates

II K6 telephone kiosk. 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. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. It has modernised internal equipment.

This K6 telephone kiosk is situated at the north west corner of Russell Square, just outside the Russell Square Gardens (on the Register of Parks and Gardens at Grade II). Directly across the road opposite are the following listed buildings: the wooden Cabmans Shelter of 1897 (Grade II); the Institute of Chemistry at No. 30 Russell Square (Grade II); Nos. 25-29 (Grade II); and Nos. 21-24 (Grade II).

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 K6 telephone kiosk adjacent to boundary railings and gates on Russell Square (north west corner) is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons: * Special design interest: the K6 telephone kiosk, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 is a milestone of industrial design. * Group value: the K6 telephone kiosk has a close visual relationship to listed buildings.