K6 Telephone Box

Reasons for Designation

The K6 telephone kiosk in Wickhambreaux is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons: * This telephone kiosk has a strong visual relationship with a listed building which it stands before frontally, and contributes significantly to the character of views to and from a grade I listed building.

Details

WICKHAMBREAUX

956/0/10021 STODMARSH ROAD
08-JUL-09 K6 Telephone Box

II
DESCRIPTION: 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 K6 at Stodmarsh is in good condition, the display signs above the doors are readily legible and it retains its glass windows.

The kiosk stands directly before Cornerways, a former post office which retains an Edward VII post box in its outside wall. Cherry Lodge (listed Grade II) stands opposite the kiosk and St Mary's Church (listed Grade I) stands approximately 25m to the north east of the kiosk. Crossways and the kiosk are prominent in the views to and from St Mary's Church, and make a positive contribution to these vistas. The kiosk has a strong visual relationship with Cornerways and its positioning means that it is a prominent feature in a number of important views.

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 in Wickhambreaux is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* This telephone kiosk has a strong visual relationship with a listed building which it stands before frontally, and contributes significantly to the character of views to and from a Grade I listed building.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

506979

Legacy System:

LBS

End of official list entry

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