The tower was once London’s tallest building, but has been closed to the public other than for special events for decades. Now, it’s becoming a hotel as well as opening a whole new tourist attraction for the capital
The tower has been closed to Londoners since the 1980s(Image: Daniel Leal/PA Wire)
For decades, the BT Tower has been an icon in the London skyline, a 1960s structure that has been everything from a revolving restaurant to a news display for the capital.
But the tower’s doors have remained closed to the public since 1981, other than a handful of special events. Unless you worked in telecoms you won’t have been able to appreciate this London landmark up close.
The Grade II-listed building, based in Fitzrovia, was completed in 1964 and originally named the Post Office Tower. At 177 metres high, it was the tallest building in London for years, but was damaged by a bomb in 1971. Its tower-based restaurant and viewing galleries had to close as a result.
The public has been unable to access the building since 1981. It was renamed the British Telecom Tower a few years later. Since then, it has been used as a communications hub. Most Londoners know it for its breaking news alerts, which play on a huge 360-degree screen wrapped around the tower.
Now, architecture firm Orms has revealed plans to turn the London landmark into a luxurious hotel with a rooftop pool. Its plans were shown at a public consultation earlier this week, with visuals showing how the completed project will look.
In addition to the hotel, the tower would include a visitor experience space giving views across the London skyline. On the ground floor, the retro 1960s buildings would be converted into shops and cafés, with plans to remove “unsightly” modern additions.
Other plans include a new public square with pedestrian routes through the complex, according to the Architects’ Journal. This is where the entrance and exit to the new visitor experience will be found. A new staircase would open up the main body of the tower, and hotel rooms would be arranged around its core.
Past consultations have also speculated on the uses for levels 24 to 30, which could become “spaces for art and cultural engagement”, although no solid plans have been revealed just yet.
Camden Council is set to receive the planning application for the site this autumn, and if successful, work could begin in 2029, once BT decommissions and removes equipment from the site.
The BT Tower isn’t the only London landmark being brought back to life as a hotel. Custom House on the River Thames, a beautiful Georgian structure, is set to become a 179-room luxury hotel including a basement spa with a 25m pool, waterfront restaurants, and quayside areas open to the public.
Admiralty Arch on The Mall, long associated with royal parades, is also set to open as a Waldorf Astoria hotel this autumn, and will offer views of Buckingham Palace in some of its rooms as well as restaurants and a spa.
Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com