Pair of K6 Telephone kiosks

Summary

A pair of K6 telephone kiosks, designed in 1935 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.

Reasons for Designation

The pair of K6 telephone kiosks outside the Department for International Development in Whitehall are listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Design interest: it is an iconic C20 industrial design by Giles Gilbert Scott;

* Group value: the pair of telephone kiosks stand opposite two listed buildings, and have a strong visual relationship with the Admiralty Screen. There are three other listed buildings in the immediate vicinity, and sight lines to Nelson's Column and the Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament).

History

The K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design, executed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 for the General Post Office on the occasion of King George V's Silver Jubilee. It was a development from his earlier highly successful K2 telephone kiosk design of 1924, which was 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 and 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. The pair of K6 Kiosks in Whitehall both bear the King's crown, dating them to before 1952.

Details

A pair of K6 Telephone kiosks, designed in 1935 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.

MATERIALS: cast iron, teak, and concrete.

EXTERIOR: the K6 is a standardised design made of cast iron, painted red overall with long horizontal glazing in the door and sides and with gilded crowns situated on the top panels being applied not perforated. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. They are made of cast iron sections bolted together, and stand on concrete bases. Each has a single side-hinged glazed teak entrance door.

The kiosks are in good condition and stand outside the Department for International Development on Whitehall, opposite the Old Shades public house (National Heritage List for England reference 1267004, listed at Grade II), and Whitehall House (NHLE reference 1066105, listed at Grade II). The Admiralty Screen by Robert Adam (NHLE reference 1066099, listed at Grade I) is immediately to the left (south) of the kiosks. Additionally, the kiosks have a strong visual relationship with Nelson's Column (NHLE reference 1276052, listed at Grade I), and the equestrian statue of Charles I (NHLE reference 1357291, listed at Grade I) to the north. Street views from the telephone kiosks to the south include the Houses of Parliament (NHLE reference 1226284, listed at Grade I) which rises in the far distance above a statue of the Duke of Cambridge (NHLE reference 1066108, listed at Grade II).

INTERIOR: all glass is intact; the kiosks have operational *C21 telephone equipment.

* Pursuant to s.1 (5A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (‘the Act’) it is declared that these aforementioned features are not of special architectural or historic interest.

Sources

Websites
Telephone box history website, accessed 15/2/2016 from http://www.the-telephone-box.co.uk/kiosks/k6/

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

Print the official list entry