Archinect - News

UK Parliament renovations uncover 360-year-old hidden passage

2020-02-28T12:56:00-05:00

A 360-year-old passageway once used by British monarchs has been rediscovered inside Parliament, revealing a piece of history that was thought to have been permanently covered up after World War II. [...] access to the passage had remained hidden in plain sight for about 70 years.

As the Houses of Parliament in the United Kingdom undergo a $5 billion renovation and restoration project by architecture studio BDP, an archival team has rediscovered a hidden passageway once used by British monarchs, members of Parliament, and dignitaries like Benjamin Franklin that dates to the 17th-century. The passageway, according to the report, was created as a procession route for a coronation banquet for King Charles II and was in use for 150 years for other official events.

The secret passageway was partially hidden and almost totally forgotten following renovations in 1950s. Inside the space, researchers discovered graffiti dating to 1851, when the passageway was first sealed off. The graffiti reads: “This room was enclosed by Tom Porter who was very fond of Ould Ale.”

Norman Foster pushes government to hold architecture competition for a new House of Lords

2020-01-22T13:51:00-05:00

According to Architect's Journal (AJ), in a letter published in The Times, Norman Foster – writing as Lord Foster and president of the Royal Fine Art Commission Trust – said the ‘power of architecture’ should be used ‘to express our political and economic ambitions’. It comes in response to Prime Minister Boris Johnson's desire to move the upper chamber of parliament out of London, reports AJ.

In his letter, Foster wrote: "If we are to build a new House of Lords, we must set our sights every bit as high and produce work that represents the very best that our age can offer. An architectural competition, backed by a clear brief, would be the place to start."

The stalled refurbishment of The Palace of Westminster

2017-10-02T04:39:00-04:00

The move would raise fascinating questions about the need to replicate habits that are tied to the layout of the current chamber – voting by trooping through “aye” and “no” lobbies, for example. Archaic linguistic protocols might seem doubly peculiar when expressed in a more modern setting. People’s behaviour is shaped by their environment and it is unlikely that parliamentary culture could be unaffected by transplant to a space unlike the unique one in which it has been nurtured.

The Palace of Westminster has been in a state of advanced disrepair for many years now. Though a plan for the building's massive £3.5bn refurbishment headed by BDP was announced last year, the government has avoided taking the decision to proceed.

The main reason for the delay in action on the crumbling Palace is financial. Yet as the the Guardian notes, the spending is necessary and justified since operational facilities are crucial in ensuing "the effective functioning of the democracy" and the structure's heritage value is hard to overestimate. While traditionalists and modernists argue over restoration and the observers contemplate the impact various spaces might have on the functioning of the parliament, prompt relocation might be the best next move since the delay is only driving costs upwards.

The UK parliament to be restored by BDP

2017-07-19T18:06:00-04:00

The full scope of work includes architecture, civil and structural engineering, building services engineering, interior design, landscape architecture, lighting design, acoustics and planning. Since its construction in the mid-1800s, many systems in the palace have never undergone a major renovation, and the heating, ventilation, water, drainage and electrical systems are antiquated.

BDP's London studio beat Allies and Morrison, Foster + Partners and HOK in the competition and has been awarded a full interdisciplinary contract for client advisory services for the refurbishment of the Palace of Westminster, the meeting place for the two houses of the UK parliament.

The firm will be collaborating with heritage and conservation specialist Donald Insall Associates, civil and structural engineer Alan Baxter Associates, building services engineer Hoare Lea and planning consultancy Gerald Eve.

Foster + Partners, HOK among shortlisted for massive Palace of Westminster restoration project

2015-12-12T04:00:00-05:00

Alongside the companies shortlisted for the management services, four of the UK’s largest architectural practices have been shortlisted to provide architectural advice. The companies shortlisted are Allies & Morrison, BDP, Foster & Partners and HOK. [...] The report, produced by Deloitte Real Estate, Aecom and HOK, stated that the major works would cost between £3.5bn and £5.7bn and take between five and 40 years to complete.

With London's Palace of Westminster crumbling, the British government may have to find a new home

2015-03-03T18:02:00-05:00

Let me share a secret with you. Even those who love the Gothic extravagance that is the Victorian Palace of Westminster know that great swaths of it are out of date. [...] In 2015 the urgent question is again what to do about it. [...] options ranging from staggering on as usual with make-do-and-mending to a new 21st-century building on a new site, possibly far from London.

London skyline campaigners' dismay as Unesco ignores risk to Westminster

2014-08-12T13:40:00-04:00

The march of London's skyscrapers looks set to continue unchecked after the UN watchdog charged with protecting sites of international importance delayed a move to place parliament – which is being obscured by a rash of new towers – on its endangered heritage list. Unesco was due to put Westminster on its List of World Heritage in Danger when it met recently in Doha, Qatar.