Telephone Kiosk

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A square-plan, freestanding K6 telephone kiosk of cast iron construction, painted red with glazing to three of the elevations and a solid panel to the fourth (E), built to Sir Giles Gilbert Scott's standardised design of 1935 and installed c. 1965. The Tynan phone kiosk bears the St Edward’s crown with a slot which dates manufacture to between 1955 and 1968, when the K6 design was discontinued.
The kiosk is sited in a prominent location within the hilltop village of Tynan, next to the stone boundary wall of Tynan Parish Church (C of I). It is overlooked by properties and well maintained by the local community. The location makes it suitable for continued community, or other, use. It has a mix of glass and Perspex glazing, and the modern telephone equipment has been removed. The paintwork is well maintained, and the kiosk is a good example of its type.

Roof: Cast-iron
RWG: None
Walling: Cast-iron, painted
Windows: Single pane with glazing bars

Historical information

A ‘TCB’ or telephone call box, along with a small square denoting the footprint of the same, is marked on this site on the OS map of 1977. The precise date of installation is not known, but the kiosk’s ‘slotted’ St. Edward’s crown motif (see below) indicates that it was placed here sometime between 1955 and 1968. It appears to have superseded an earlier kiosk which was located at what was formerly the local post office on Abbey Street (present no.18) and which is shown on the 1951 OS map. Presumably the decision to install the present kiosk (and remove the old one) was taken after the post office relocated to no.27 Main Street, a move which took place sometime between 1951 and 1977, probably after 1955

GENERAL INFORMATION ON K6 KIOSKS The K6 model was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1935 to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of King George V. Constructed in cast-iron with a teak door, compact in size and easily mass-produced, the design of the K6 was developed from Scott’s previous telephone kiosk models, the larger K2 (introduced in 1926) and K3 (1929). It was distributed throughout the UK from 1936 and represents the most successful and populous type of kiosk to be introduced with some 60,000 being 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 year later, under the 'Tercentenary Concession' celebrating the Post Office's 300th anniversary, a further 1,000 kiosks were installed over 12 years for local authorities willing to pay a five-year subscription of £4. After 1949 this was succeeded by the ‘Rural Allocation scheme’, under which kiosks were placed in out-of-town areas upon the recommendation of a rural authority.

A minor alteration in 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 that country, a slot in the fascia allowing either version to be inserted into all of those manufactured from this date. The model continued in production until 1968 when the more modernist K8, designed by Bruce Martin, was introduced.

References – Primary sources
1 OS map, County series, Armagh sheet 11 – 1951; IG sheet 217-13NE 1977

Secondary Sources
2 N. Johannessen, ‘Telephone Boxes’ Shire Publications (Princes Risborough, 2010)3
3 Linge, Nigel and Sutton, Andy, ‘The British phonebox’, (Amberley Publishing, 2017)
4 The Telephone Box - http://www.the-telephone-box.co.uk/ (accessed 12 November 2025)
5 GPO - KIOSK No. 6 (K6) - https://www.britishtelephones.com/k6.htm (accessed 12 November 2025)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
D. Plan Form
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

S. Authenticity
R. Age
V. Authorship
Y. Social, Cultural or Economic Importance
Z. Rarity
X. Local Interest

Evaluation

A K6 telephone kiosk designed in 1935 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott installed between 1946-1953. This iconic piece of street furniture was once common but is now almost entirely replaced by modern mobile phone use. The kiosk is well maintained and contributes to the village setting, combining with the adjacent church and houses to reinforce the character of the village. While the former Post Office that sat next to it has been replaced, the kiosk survives, serving as a reminder of the function the public telephone system played, in rural communities. It has been re-purposed for community use, providing local information, bird seed etc alongside an external village information board.