Thomas Heatherwick’s Camden-based studio will oversee the task of turning the 177m-tall former telecommunications tower into a hotel run by the MCR Hotel chain, the third largest hotel chain in the USA, it was announced today (21 February).
It follows MCR’s purchase of the building from BT Group for £270 million, a deal which the telecoms firm says will ‘preserve this iconic building for decades to come’.
MCR says it intends to convert the building to a hotel under yet-to-be-finalised designs by Heatherwick Studio, opening up the tower to the public for the first time since the closure of its rotating restaurant in 1980.
The BT Group, which has long scaled back its operations at the tower, is expected to take years to vacate the premises and remove technical equipment from the structure, however. It remains unclear whether the wrap-around external digital screen will be retained.
Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director of Heatherwick Studio, said: ‘This is an extraordinary building and an amazing opportunity to bring it back to life.
‘We’re excited at the prospect of working with Fitzrovia’s residents and with many thousands of Londoners, to repurpose this important piece of the city’s living heritage.’
Upon completion in 1964, the telecommunications tower was London’s tallest building before being topped by the NatWest tower in 1980. The BT Group has owned the structure since 1984.
Tyler Morse, CEO and owner of MCR, said: ‘We will take our time to carefully develop proposals that respect the London landmark’s rich history and open the building for everyone to enjoy.’
MCR operates almost 150 hotels include The High Line Hotel – located inside a former seminary – and the TWA Hotel in New York – inside the former Flight Centre at JFK airport deigned by Eero Saarinen in 1962.
Morse said there were ‘many parallels between the TWA Hotel and the BT Tower [and] both are world-renowned, groundbreaking pieces of architecture’.
Brent Mathews, property director at BT Group said: ‘[The BT Tower has] played a vital role in carrying the nation’s calls, messages and TV signals, but increasingly we’re delivering content and communication via other means. This deal with MCR will enable BT Tower to take on a new purpose, preserving this iconic building for decades to come.’
The Grade II-listed Fitzrovia communications tower was originally commissioned by the General Post Office to provide telecoms between London and the rest of the country, and designed by the architects of the Ministry of Public Building and Works.
Completed in 1964, the 177m BT Tower became the tallest structure in London – overtaking the Millbank Tower – until the NatWest Tower was completed in 1980.
In 1971, the building was extensively damaged by an alleged IRA bomb plot, which saw a bomb explode in the roof of its iconic tower-top restaurant.
After the bombing the BT Tower restaurant was closed to the public and public access to the building was halted altogether from 1981, although the tower has been used for a handful of special events alongside its ongoing use as a major UK communications hub.
An early-noughties renovation saw the 360-degree coloured lighting display first introduced to the rotating top of the tower, and in 2003 the glass-clad-concrete building was given its listed status.
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