Summary

A K6 telephone kiosk, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 for the General Post Office,

Description

A K6 telephone kiosk, designed in 1935 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. It is a standard design made of cast-iron, with long horizontal glazing in the door and sides, and with crowns, situated on the top panels, applied not perforated. There are rectangular white display signs, reading TELEPHONE beneath the shallow-curved roof. The kiosk is painted in the standard colour of Post Office Red 539, which was selected to match the colour of Post Office letter boxes.

History

The K6 telephone kiosk is a milestone of C20 industrial design. The K6 was designed 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, Neo-classical, K2 telephone kiosk of 1924. 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; his many celebrated commissions include the Anglican cathedral of Liverpool and Battersea power station. The K2 and K6 telephone kiosks represent a very thoughtful adaptation of architectural tradition to contemporary technological requirements: well over 70,000 K6's were eventually produced. In the1960's many were replaced with the new kiosk type, but many still remain, and continue to be an iconic feature on Britain's streetscapes.

Reasons for Listing

The K6 telephone kiosk adjacent to 6 Duke St, Chelmsford is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Group Value: for its a strong visual relationship with three listed buildings two of which are adjacent and the other which is opposite.

* Design interest: as an iconic feature of the C20 by Giles Gilbert Scott.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26676102

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.

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