Telephone Kiosk, junction of Newcastle Road and Lower Square, Castlewellan, Co Down BT31 9DW

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A ‘K6’ telephone kiosk designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, dating from some time between 1955 and c.1968. The kiosk is located at the junction of Newcastle Road and Lower Square, Castlewellan.

The Kiosk has the usual cast-iron body painted red, but with what appears to be largely replacement glazing, with one glazed panel now missing and another broken. Each elevation displays the St. Edward's crown motif over a glazed ‘TELEPHONE’ panel. The door opens to the southeast and following the standard arrangement the northeast side, which faces directly into the wall of no.24-26 Lower Square, is blank.

Historical information

This telephone kiosk can be dated to sometime between 1955 and 1968, the period during which this particular version of the ‘K6’ type was in use (see below). The first available OS map on which it is shown is that dated 1977.

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 paying a five-year subscription of £4.

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 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.

Sources - Primary Sources
1 OS map sheet 240-13, 1977

Secondary Sources
2 N. Johannessen, ‘Telephone Boxes’ Shire Publications (Princes Risborough 1994).
3 The Telephone Box - http://www.the-telephone-box.co.uk/ (accessed 3 September 2021)

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

A. Style
B. Proportion
C. Ornamentation
H-. Alterations detracting from building
I. Quality and survival of Interior
J. Setting

Criteria for listing: historic interest

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

Evaluation

A largely intact telephone kiosk of the K6 type originally designed in 1935 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, with this particular variant dating from between 1955 and 1968 Once common, these iconic pieces of street furniture are now increasingly rare, with this example seemingly the last of its kind within the town of Castlewellan.