Daily Express Building, London

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Black vitrolite panelling on the Daily Express Building. Express Building.jpg
Black vitrolite panelling on the Daily Express Building.

The Daily Express Building (120 Fleet Street) is a Grade II* listed building located in Fleet Street in the City of London. It was designed in 1932 by Ellis and Clark to serve as the home of the Daily Express newspaper and is one of the most prominent examples of art-deco / Streamline Moderne architecture in London.

Listed building Collection of protected architectural creations in the United Kingdom

A listed building, or listed structure, is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, Cadw in Wales, and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in Northern Ireland.

Fleet Street street in the City of London, England

Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was named.

City of London City and county in United Kingdom

The City of London is a city and county that contains the historic centre and the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London from its settlement by the Romans in the 1st century AD to the Middle Ages, but the agglomeration has since grown far beyond the City's borders. The City is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though it remains a notable part of central London. Administratively, it forms one of the 33 local authority districts of Greater London; however, the City of London is not a London borough, a status reserved for the other 32 districts. It is also a separate county of England, being an enclave surrounded by Greater London. It is the smallest county in the United Kingdom.

Contents

The exterior features a black façade with rounded corners in vitrolite and clear glass, with chromium strips. The flamboyant lobby, designed by Robert Atkinson, includes plaster reliefs by Eric Aumonier, silver and gilt decorations, a magnificent silvered pendant lamp and an oval staircase. The furniture inside the building was, for the most part, designed by Betty Joel. [1]

Chromium Chemical element with atomic number 24

Chromium is a chemical element with symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in group 6. It is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard and brittle transition metal. Chromium boasts a high usage rate as a metal that is able to be highly polished while resisting tarnishing. Chromium is also the main additive in stainless steel, a popular steel alloy due to its uncommonly high specular reflection. Simple polished chromium reflects almost 70% of the visible spectrum, with almost 90% of infrared light being reflected. The name of the element is derived from the Greek word χρῶμα, chrōma, meaning color, because many chromium compounds are intensely colored.

Lobby (room) room in a building used for entry from the outside

A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, reception or an entrance hall, it often is a large, vast room or complex of rooms adjacent to the auditorium. It is a repose area for spectators and place of venues, especially used before performance and during intermissions but also as a place of celebrations or festivities after performance.

Robert Atkinson was an English architect primarily working in the Art Deco style.

The Grade II* listing relates not only to the architectural features but also to the massive reinforced concrete stacked portal frame structure designed by Sir Owen Williams.

As part of a redevelopment of the surrounding site the building was entirely refurbished in 2000 by John Robertson Architects. The foyer was recreated largely from photographs and the façade completely upgraded. [2] The concrete portal frame structure was preserved.

John Robertson Architects is an award-winning architectural practice based in Bankside, London, founded by Principal Director John Robertson in 1993. The practice concentrates on the design and implementation of new build, retrofit and historic refurbishment and restoration projects in Central London. It is a member of the AJ100, consisting of the 100 largest architecture practices in the UK and ranked by the Architects' Journal in 2017 as the 32nd largest practice in Britain. JRA is a foundation member of the Landaid Appeal.

The lobby of this building was open to the public on London Open House day, over the weekend of 19 and 20 September 2009. Members of the public were allowed to view the lobby, which is normally only accessible to employees of the building and invited guests. [3]

"Britain" Panel from the Daily Express building foyer Lobby, (former) Daily Express Building by Ronald Atkinson.jpg
"Britain" Panel from the Daily Express building foyer
"Empire" Panel from the Daily Express building foyer Lobby, (former) Daily Express Building by Ronald Atkinson 2.jpg
"Empire" Panel from the Daily Express building foyer
The aluminium leaf recessed ceiling and pendant lamp Lobby Ceiling, Daily Express building.jpg
The aluminium leaf recessed ceiling and pendant lamp

The building is currently occupied by Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs U.S. investment bank

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in New York City. It offers services in investment management, securities, asset management, prime brokerage, and securities underwriting.

Sister Express buildings in Manchester and Glasgow

The company also constructed two sister buildings of similar design during this period. The Express Building, Manchester (1939) was critically acclaimed as the best of the three due to its superior exterior design and better site and was the only one of the three to be architecturally designed by Sir Owen Williams. [4] The 1936 building in Glasgow housed the offices of the Glasgow Herald and Evening Times newspapers from 1980 to circa 2000, but has now been converted into flats. [5]

Daily Express Building, Manchester building in Manchester, England

The Daily Express Building, located on Great Ancoats Street, Manchester, England, is a Grade II* listed building which was designed by engineer, Sir Owen Williams. It was built in 1939 to house one of three Daily Express offices; the other two similar buildings are located in London and Glasgow.

Owen Williams (engineer) British engineer and architect

Sir Evan Owen Williams was an English engineer and architect, known for being the principal engineer for Gravelly Hill Interchange as well as a number of key modernist buildings, including the Express Building in Manchester and Boots D10 Building in Nottingham.

Glasgow City and council area in Scotland

Glasgow is the most populous city in Scotland, and the third most populous city in the United Kingdom, as of the 2017 estimated city population of 621,020. Historically part of Lanarkshire, the city now forms the Glasgow City council area, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland; the local authority is Glasgow City Council. Glasgow is situated on the River Clyde in the country's West Central Lowlands. Inhabitants of the city are referred to as "Glaswegians" or "Weegies". It is the fourth most visited city in the UK. Glasgow is also known for the Glasgow patter, a distinct dialect of the Scots language that is noted for being difficult to understand by those from outside the city.

The building in the media

The building, the paper and its best remembered editor, Arthur Christiansen (who in reality had already relinquished the role), featured in the British science fiction film The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961), in which actors Edward Judd and Leo McKern have leading roles. The satirical magazine Private Eye invariably referred to the building, in the days when it was occupied by the Daily Express, as 'The Black Lubyanka'.

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References

  1. ↑ "Betty Joel". Answers.com.
  2. ↑ Gagg, Russell (1 October 2011). Basics Interior Architecture 05: Texture + Materials. A&C Black. p. 42. ISBN   978-2-940411-53-5.
  3. ↑ "A Typical Saturday out in London". The London Insider. 20 September 2009.
  4. ↑ "The Best Architecture in Manchester". prideofmanchester.com.
  5. ↑ "Glasgow, 159-195 Albion Street, Daily Express Building". Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 2015-04-13.

Coordinates: 51°30′52″N0°06′22″W / 51.5144°N 0.1060°W / 51.5144; -0.1060

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