Description

ST NEWLYN EAST

1105/0/10003 MITCHELL, NR NEWQUAY
08-NOV-10 K6 TELEPHONE KIOSK

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. It appears to be intact and in good condition (2009).

The kiosk is situated on the south side of the main road through the village. On the opposite side of the road, at a distance of approximately 20m, stands Wellesley House and attached stable block, listed at Grade II. Ivy House, also Grade II, stands 30m to the west of the kiosk. The kiosk has a strong visual relationship with both these buildings, with the three forming a triangular grouping on this stretch of road. Raleigh House, also Grade II stands approximately 40m to the north east of the kiosk, but there is a minimal visual relationship between the two owing to the angle at which both are situated along the road.

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 Mitchell, Cornwall, is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* It has a strong visual relationship with two listed buildings
* It is a representative example within a village setting of this important C20 industrial design

Reasons for Listing

The K6 telephone kiosk in Mitchell, Cornwall, is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* It has a strong visual relationship with two listed buildings
* It is a representative example within a village setting of this important C20 industrial design

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26674701

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  For the Record
• 
  Building Small Projects (New Best of Fine Woodworking)
• 
  Staffordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)