"American hotel chain MCR bought the spindly Fitzrovia superstar from BT Group for a cool £275 million. This was incredibly exciting news, as the former centre of the 'white heat of technology' (as then-Prime Minister Harold Wilson dubbed the communications centre upon its opening in 1964) had reduced public access after anarchist collective the Angry Brigade set off a bomb there in 1971."
"The company certainly has form when it comes to boutique hotels, as it transformed Camden Council's brutalist HQ, opposite St. Pancras Station into the upmarket Standard in 2019. Orm also worked on the Outernet, the dazzling immersive space next to Tottenham Court Road station, which became London's most popular attraction in 2023."
The BT Tower, a Grade II-listed London landmark built in 1964, is being converted into a boutique hotel by American hotel chain MCR following their £275 million purchase from BT Group. Shoreditch-based architecture firm Orms has been appointed to lead the redevelopment, taking over from Camden's Heatherwick Studio. The building had restricted public access since 1971 after a bombing by the Angry Brigade. Orms has significant experience with boutique hotel conversions, having transformed Camden Council's brutalist headquarters into the upmarket Standard hotel in 2019 and worked on the Outernet immersive space. Initial design proposals are expected during a public consultation in May.
#bt-tower-redevelopment #boutique-hotel-conversion #london-architecture #heritage-building-restoration #orms-architecture-firm
Read at Time Out London
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