Telephone Kiosk, junction of Newcastle Road and Lower Square, Castlewellan, Co Down BT31 9DW

Telephone Kiosk, junction of Newcastle Road and Lower Square, Castlewellan

A K6 type telephone kiosk dating from between 1955 and 1968, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. The kiosk is located at the junction of Newcastle Road and Lower Square in Castlewellan and is situated within a conservation area.

The kiosk is constructed of cast-iron painted red and features the typical K6 design. Each elevation displays the St. Edward's crown motif over a glazed TELEPHONE panel. The door opens to the southeast. The northeast elevation, which faces directly into the wall of no.24-26 Lower Square, is blank. The kiosk has largely replacement glazing, with one glazed panel now missing and another broken. The teak door is original to the design.

The K6 model was originally designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of King George V. The design developed from Scott's earlier telephone kiosk models, the K2 (introduced in 1926) and K3 (1929). Constructed in cast-iron with a compact, easily mass-produced design, the K6 was distributed throughout the UK from 1936 and became the most successful type ever introduced, with approximately 60,000 placed around the country. About 8,000 of these were installed as part of the Jubilee Concession, which allowed towns and villages with a post office to apply for a kiosk. A further 1,000 kiosks were subsequently installed under the Tercentenary Concession celebrating the Post Office's 300th anniversary, with local authorities paying a five-year subscription of £4.

A minor alteration to the K6 design occurred following the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, when the Tudor crown motif was replaced with the St. Edward's crown. From 1955, the Crown of Scotland was used for kiosks in Scotland, with a slot in the fascia allowing either version to be inserted into all kiosks manufactured from this date. The model continued in production until 1968 when the modernist K8, designed by Bruce Martin, was introduced.

This example appears to be the last of its kind surviving in Castlewellan. Once common street furniture, K6 kiosks are now increasingly rare. The kiosk is largely intact, though considerably altered by replacement glazing.