BT Tower

From Wikishire
Jump to navigation Jump to search
BT Tower

Middlesex


The BT Tower
Type: Offices
Location
Grid reference: TQ29228193
Location: 51°31’17"N, 0°8’20"W
History
Built 1961 – 1964
By: Eric Bedford
Offices
Information
Owned by: MCR Hotels

The BT Tower or BT Communication Tower,[1] formerly known as the Post Office Tower, is a Grade-II listed building and communications tower in Fitzrovia, in deepest urban Middlesex,[2] It can also be seen called the Telecom Tower.

The main structure is 581 feet high, with aerial rigging bringing the total height to 620 feet.

On completion in 1964, this was the tallest structure in London, and it remained so until 1980. Butlins managed a revolving restaurant in the tower from 1966 until 1980.[3] A 360° LED screen displays news across central London.[4]

In 2024, British Telecommunications plc sold the BT Tower to MCR Hotels.[5]

History

Design and construction

The tower was commissioned by the General Post Office. Its primary purpose was to support the microwave aerials then used to carry telecommunications traffic from London to the rest of the country, as part of the GPO microwave network.[6]

The new tower replaced a shorter, 1940s steel lattice tower on the roof of the neighbouring Museum Telephone Exchange. The taller structure was required to protect the radio links' line of sight against tall buildings then planned in London. Links were routed by way of GPO microwave stations Harrow Weald, Bagshot, Kelvedon Hatch and Fairseat, and locations including the London Air Traffic Control Centre.[7][8]

Error creating thumbnail:
View of the tower and its base from Cleveland Mews

The tower was designed by the Ministry of Public Building and Works, under chief architects Eric Bedford and G R Yeats. Typical for its time, the building is concrete clad in glass. The narrow cylindrical shape was chosen as a stable platform for microwave aerials. It shifts no more than 10 inches in wind speeds of up to 95 mph. To prevent overheating, the glass cladding had to be tinted.[9]

Construction began in June 1961. Owing to the building's height and its having a tower crane jib across the top virtually throughout the whole construction period, it gradually became a very prominent landmark that could be seen from almost anywhere in London. Construction reached 475 feet by August 1963. The revolving restaurant was prefabricated by Ransomes & Rapier[10] and the lattice tower by Stewarts & Lloyds subsidiary Tubewrights.[11]

The tower was topped out on 15 July 1964, and opened the next year by the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson.

The tower was originally designed to be just 364 feet high; its foundations are sunk down through 174 feet of London clay, and are formed of a concrete raft 90 feet square, three feet thick, reinforced with six layers of cables, on top of which sits a reinforced concrete pyramid.[12]

Initially, the first 16 floors were for technical equipment and power. Above that was a 115-foot section for the microwave aerials, then six floors of suites, a revolving restaurant, kitchens, technical equipment, and finally a cantilevered steel lattice tower. The construction cost was £2.5 million.[9]

The first microwave link was to Norwich on 1 January 1965. The Meteorological Office put a weather radar on top of the tower.[13] Much of the telecommunications equipment was made by General Electric Company|GEC.[14] The stainless steel clad windows were made by Henry Hope & Sons Ltd.[15]

Opening

The tower was opened to the public on 19 May 1966, by the Postmaster General, Anthony Wedgwood Benn and Billy Butlin.[16]

As well as communications equipment and office space, there were viewing galleries and a souvenir shop. Butlins' Top of the Tower revolving restaurant on the 34th floor made one revolution every 23 minutes[17][18] and meals cost about £4.[19]

In the first year there were nearly one million visitors, and over 100,000 diners.[20]

Bombing

A bomb exploded in the ceiling of the men's toilets at the Top of the Tower restaurant at 04:30 on 31 October 1971, the blast damaged buildings and cars up to 400 yards away.. Responsibility for the bomb was claimed by members of the Angry Brigade, a far-left anarchist collective.[21] A call was also made by a person claiming to be the Kilburn Battalion of the IRA.[22]

The tower was closed to the general public following the 1971 bombing, but the restaurant reopened. In 1980, Butlins' restaurant lease expired.[23]

The restaurant has since been closed, but retains the revolving floor.[24]

Recent

The tower's microwave aerials remained in use into the 21st century, connected to subterranean optical fibre links.[25]

Panoramic view from BT Tower in the evening

In 2009, a 360° coloured screen was installed 548 feet up, over the 36th and 37th floors of the tower, replacing an earlier light projection system, incorporating 529,750 LEDs arranged in 177 vertical strips around the tower.: at the time making it the largest of its type in the world, a circumference of 194 feet. It displayed a countdown of the number of days until the start of the 2012 Summer Olympics.[26][27]

The tower's LED screen

In April 2019, the screen broadcast a Windows 7 error message for almost a day.[28]

File:London panorama from the BT Tower.jpg
360° panoramic view from the revolving restaurant

For the tower's 50th anniversary, the 34th floor was opened for three days from 3 to 5 October 2015 to 2,400 winners of a lottery.[29]

File:BT Tower, London, 15 March 2011.jpg
The tower at night

Entry to the building is by two high-speed lifts, which travel at a top speed of 1400 feet per minute and reach the top of the building in under 30 seconds.

On 21 February 2024, BT Group announced the sale of BT Tower to MCR Hotels, who plan to retain the tower as a hotel.[30][31][32]

The Post Office Tower (as it was) is famously climbed and toppled by a giant kitten in The Goodies 1971 episode King Kong, a parody Kitten Kong,[33] which scene became part of the programme's title sequence.

The tower has appeared in novels, films and on television, including Smashing Time, The The Bourne Ultimatum, Space Patrol, Doctor Who, V for Vendetta, 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later, The Union and Danger Mouse. [34]

Two stamps depicting the tower, designed by Clive Abbott were issued in 1965.[35][36]

Races

The first documented race up the tower's stairs was on 18 April 1968, between University College London and the University of Edinburgh; it was won by an Edinburgh runner in 4 minutes, 46 seconds.[37]

In 1969, eight university teams competed. John Pearson from Victoria University of Manchester was fastest in 5 minutes, 6 seconds.[38]

In May 1969, the tops of the GPO Tower and the Empire State Building in New York City served as the start and finish lines of the Daily Mail Trans-Atlantic Air Race. The race between the two buildings was held over an eight-day period and commemorated the 50th Anniversary of the first non-stop transatlantic flight of Alcock and Brown. A total of 21 prizes were offered to entrants for categories based on the type of aircraft they utilised and their direction of travel.[39][40]

Secrecy

Information about the tower was designated an official secret and in 1978, journalist Duncan Campbell was tried for collecting information about such locations. The judge ordered the tower could only be referred to as "Location 23".[41]

It is often said that the tower did not appear on Ordnance Survey maps, despite being a structure 581 feet tall in the middle of central London that had been open to the public.[42] However, this is incorrect; the 1971 1:25,000 and 1981 1:10,000 Ordnance Survey maps show the tower[43] as does the 1984 London A–Z street atlas.[44]

("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about BT Tower)

References

  1. ↑ "BT Communication Tower". Historic England. https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1350342?section=official-list-entry. 
  2. ↑ Perkin, George, ed (1968). Concrete in Architecture. London: The Cement and Concrete Association. 
  3. ↑ Kennedy, Maev (27 March 2003). "BT Tower among icons of technology". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/mar/27/arts.artsnews. 
  4. ↑ "BT Tower lights up with 'It's a Girl' in pink". 2 May 2015. https://www.itv.com/news/update/2015-05-02/bt-tower-lights-up-with-its-a-girl-in-pink/. 
  5. ↑ Prior, Grant. "BT Tower to become hotel". Construction Enquirer. https://www.constructionenquirer.com/2024/02/22/bt-tower-to-become-hotel/. 
  6. ↑ Belfast Telegraph Thursday 2 February 1961, page 10
  7. ↑ "BT Tower Timelapse". Pukka TV Group. https://www.londontimelapse.co.uk/items/british-telecom-tower-time-lapse-also-known-bt-telecom-tower/. 
  8. ↑ Dr. Elizabeth Burton (19 May 2020). "The BT Tower and a Classified Communications Network". London Science Museum (Science Museum Group). https://blog.sciencemuseum.org.uk/the-bt-tower-and-a-classified-communications-network/. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Post Office Tower (BT Tower)". © Institution of Civil Engineers. https://www.ice.org.uk/what-is-civil-engineering/infrastructure-projects/post-office-tower. 
  10. ↑ Daily Herald Friday 1 November 1963, page 8
  11. ↑ Birmingham Daily Post Wednesday 7 October 1964, page 7
  12. ↑ "BT Tower: serving the nation 24 hours a day", BT, 1993
  13. ↑ Liverpool Echo Thursday 1 October 1964, page 8
  14. ↑ Coventry Evening Telegraph Friday 8 October 1965, page 63
  15. ↑ Birmingham Daily Post Monday 26 July 1965, page 24
  16. ↑ Post Office Tower Opening (1966) - YouTube
  17. ↑ "Look at Life - Eating high, 1966". September 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMPXmnK8G8E&t=142. 
  18. ↑ Liverpool Daily Post Wednesday 3 June 1964, page 14
  19. ↑ The Tatler Saturday 17 September 1966, page 51
  20. ↑ Glancey, Jonathan (7 October 2005). "The great communicator". https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2005/oct/07/architecture. 
  21. ↑ "Bangor Daily News". https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2457&dat=19711102&id=ICs0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=G-EIAAAAIBAJ&pg=3240,422159&hl=en. 
  22. ↑ "BBC ON THIS DAY – 31 – 1971: Bomb explodes in Post Office tower". BBC News. 3 April 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/31/newsid_2464000/2464143.stm. 
  23. ↑ "BT Tower to open for first time in 29 years". 16 August 2010. https://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/16/bt_tower/. 
  24. ↑ Feilden, Eloise (29 February 2024). "Will the revolving restaurant in London’s BT Tower return to its former glory?". The Drinks Business (London, UK: © Union Press Ltd). https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2024/02/will-the-revolving-restaurant-in-londons-bt-tower-return-to-its-former-glory/. 
  25. ↑ Vincent, James (22 January 2014). "'Fastest ever' commercial internet speeds in London: Download 44 films in a second". Independent (The Independent). https://www.the-independent.com/tech/fastest-ever-commercial-internet-speeds-in-london-download-44-films-in-a-second-9077061.html. 
  26. ↑ "The BT Tower". October 2015. https://www.bt.com/bt-plc/assets/documents/about-bt/our-history/bt-archives/information-sheets-and-timelines/bt-tower.pdf. 
  27. ↑ Peracha, Qasim (4 April 2021). "The little-known story of how tragedy struck at London's BT Tower". My London (The Trust Project). https://www.mylondon.news/news/zone-1-news/bt-tower-london-tragedy-story-17083714. 
  28. ↑ Thomson, Iain. "BT Tower broadcasts error message to the nation as Windows displays admin's shame". https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/04/08/bt_tower_broadcasts_error_message_to_the_nation_as_windows_crashes/. 
  29. ↑ "Celebrating BT Tower's 50 ingenious years – come and visit the top of the BT Tower!". http://home.bt.com/news/bt-life/BT-Tower-event-11363983181830?s_cid=con_FURL_BTcom_BTTower50. 
  30. ↑ Kolirin, Lianne (21 February 2024). "The BT Tower, London's futuristic landmark, to become hotel". https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/21/travel/londons-iconic-bt-tower-to-become-hotel-intl-scli-gbr/index.html. 
  31. ↑ Laursen, Christian Moess. "BT Group Sells London's BT Tower for $347 Million to MCR Hotels" (in en-US). WSJ. https://www.wsj.com/business/telecom/bt-group-sells-londons-bt-tower-for-347-million-to-mcr-hotels-57fd5b02. 
  32. ↑ Warren, Jess (21 February 2024). "BT Tower: 'Iconic' landmark to be turned into a hotel after £275m sale". https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-68352275. 
  33. ↑ "Golden opportunity to relive 60s and dine at top of BT Tower". 19 June 2015. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jun/19/bt-tower-restaurant-to-reopen-to-public. 
  34. ↑ Jury, Louise (19 June 2015). "The BT Tower restaurant is going to reopen this summer!". https://www.standard.co.uk/reveller/restaurants/bt-tower-restaurant-your-chance-to-turn-back-time-and-dine-at-the-top-of-a-landmark-10331448.html. 
  35. ↑ West Lothian Courier Friday 6 August 1965, page 9
  36. ↑ East Kent Times Wednesday 13 October 1965, page 11
  37. ↑ "GPO Tower Race 1968: celebrating 50 years of UK tower running". https://towerrunninguk.com/tag/bt-tower/. 
  38. ↑ "GPO Tower Race To Top 1969". British Pathe. 23 January 1969. https://www.britishpathe.com/video/gpo-tower-race-to-top. 
  39. ↑ "Air Race Ends, Proving a Point". The New York Times. 12 May 1969. https://www.nytimes.com/1969/05/12/archives/air-race-ends-proving-a-point-speed-on-land-helps-the-victors-cross.html. 
  40. ↑ From the tower. July 1968. 4, 6. https://books.google.com/books?id=qjJUpdt0o2YC&pg=PA4. Retrieved 10 February 2025. 
  41. ↑ Grant, Thomas (2015). Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories. John Murray. p. 315. 
  42. ↑ "London Telecom Tower, formerly BT Tower and Post Office Tower, Fitzrovia, West End, London". urban75. http://www.urban75.org/london/telecom.html. 
  43. ↑ Kennett, Paul (August 2016). "Not so secret tower". Sheetlines (The Charles Close Society for the Study of Ordnance Survey Maps) (106): 27.  (The Charles Close Society)
  44. ↑ A–Z London de luxe Atlas. Geographers' A–Z Map Company Ltd. 1984. p. 59. 
Retrieved from "https://wikishire.co.uk/w/index.php?title=BT_Tower&oldid=91535"