A shopping centre with a maximum of 120 units which supports an office block of eleven storeys, built in 1960-1965, to the designs of Paul Boissevain (1922-2014) and Barbara Osmond (1922-1975).

The Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre and Hannibal House, 1960-65, are not listed for the following principal reasons:

Degree of Architectural interest:

* although the shopping centre originally had architectural interest due to the quality of its design, this has been eroded by a series of incremental changes over the years so that it does not resemble its original appearance; * Hannibal House has not been greatly altered, but it lacks the design quality of other buildings of its type and date which have been listed.

Degree of Historic interest:

*the shopping centre was one of the first two, and is now the earliest surviving building of this type in England, but it has been greatly changed from its original layout and appearance.

Degree of Group value:

* although the shopping centre and Hannibal House are in proximity to, and have some planning interest with, the Metropolitan Tabernacle, the Michael Faraday Memorial and the former Alexander Fleming House (now Metro Central Heights) (all Grade II) the original clarity of the design which gave significance to the juxtaposition has since been eroded by numerous incremental changes.

The marshy land, known as St George’s Fields was gradually developed in the C18 with a mixture of housing and institutional buildings, as was the area to its east, called Newington Butts, which included the start of the coaching road to Kent. The area became a transport hub in the C19 and was renamed Elephant and Castle, apparently after a coaching inn which stood there. The railway arrived in 1863 and the Underground in 1890, with the Northern Line, to which the Bakerloo extension was added in 1906.

The area became known as the ‘Piccadilly of South London’ in the later C19 and early C20, with a department store, theatre and cinemas, as well as pubs. Redevelopment was first considered in the 1930s by the London County Council (LCC), but nothing came of it. Bombing in the war caused much destruction, and the LCC bought up land in the area, initially to provide parking during the Festival of Britain. The area was declared a Comprehensive Development Area (as allowed by the Town and Country Planning Act of 1947). A new road layout was implemented in the late 1950s, and this caused the demolition of further buildings, including the original Elephant and Castle pub which was set on a triangular island site. Two, large new roundabouts were created to join the many roads which converge here. In 1956 the LCC Planning Committee announced redevelopment over a site extending to thirty acres.

This scheme, drawn up by the LCC Planner, Walter Bor, included a space of three acres for a large shopping centre, to be set to the east of the short roadway that joined the two new roundabouts. This was offered through a competition to private developers and their architects. Retail space could be between 100,000 and 130,000 square feet in extent and there were to be a restaurant and two public houses (one of which was to be built into the shopping centre, and the other free standing). Office space was a requirement, and so were advertising screens on the main façade, in an attempt to reassert the Elephant and Castle as the ‘Piccadilly of the South’.

The LCC received 36 entries, several of which came from well-known practices, such as Richard Seifert, Owen Luder, John Burnett and Tait. Five of these were short listed, including one from Erno Goldfinger, who was then building Alexander Fleming House (now Metro Heights) on the opposite side of the New Kent Road. The eventual winners were Paul Boissevain (1922-2014) and Barbara Osmond (1922-1975), a team of husband and wife, in combination with the Willett group as developers. Their practice had established itself with near-wins in international competitions, including Sydney Opera House (placed third, 1957) and the northern extension to the National Gallery (placed second, 1958-1959). Although they had no direct experience of designing a shopping mall, Boissevain had toured the United States and may well have been aware of the out-of town malls being built there.

The Elephant and Castle mall opened in March 1965. Had it been finished to time in 1963 it would have been the first enclosed example in the United Kingdom. Delays with construction meant that the Bull Ring in Birmingham opened in May 1964 and is considered to be the first completed shopping mall, although designed after the Elephant and Castle.

The winning scheme was designed around two wide aisles, the longer of which extended north-south, crossed by the shorter, which ran east-west. It was designed to have 120 shops and parking at two basement levels for 154 cars. The office block above, called Hannibal House, had eleven storeys.

Despite buoyant hopes, the development was not successful. The office space failed to find tenants and was then taken by the Ministry of Works for its own offices. By 1967, two years after opening, some fifty of the 120 units had been let. By 1970 The Times reported that the 'Developers … had asked for permission to set up a street market outside the building to boost trade’. This was followed by market arcades inside the centre. In 1975 the owners, Willets, sold the centre to Ravenseft Properties who undertook a refurbishment which converted the topmost of the three levels to office space and a conference centre. The exterior was clad in panels of Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete (GRC) with a continuous horizontal band of glazing to the top floor.

A further refurbishment in 1990 led to the cladding being painted shocking pink with a tension fabric pavilion placed over the principal entrance on the western front. It had previously been painted green and is now blue. The street market became a more-or-less permanent feature of the surrounding area on the north and west sides of the building.

A shopping centre of 120 units which supports an office block of eleven storeys, built in 1960-1965, to the designs of Paul Boissevain (1922-2014) and Barbara Osmond (1922-1975). Altered in the late C20.

SHOPPING CENTRE

MATERIALS: reinforced concrete construction throughout with shuttered concrete ramps. The external walls are covered in cladding, or else are of plate glass set in aluminium frames. Original cladding is stove-enamelled steel panels, which have mostly been overlayed with later cladding. At the first-floor level are Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete (GRC) panels, installed in 1975 on three sides of the building. The flat, felted roof has four glazed, pitched skylights evenly spaced on the north-south central axis.

PLAN: the building is rectangular on plan, with rectangular cut outs at the north-west and south-west corners, and is oriented with the longer sides facing east and west. It faces roads on three sides, with a railway viaduct parallel to the eastern flank. The building is constructed around a 24 foot square grid and has two basement floors, which include a delivery tunnel and loading bays, car parking, service lifts and storage areas. Above this there were originally three sales floors, called lower ground floor, ground floor and first floor. Pavement level on the street is approximately half way between the two ground floors, hence their naming. Both floors were approached by ramps on the north, south and east sides, and further ramps connected to the underpasses which led to other parts of the redevelopment. The lower-ground floor of the surrounding concourse, where the street market is now established, is set in a moat. Wide pedestrian walkways run through the centre of the buildings’ interior and divide it into four areas. The eastern walkway at upper-ground-floor level connects to a bridge that leads across to the overground railway station. As originally planned, the pedestrian walkway on the upper-ground- floor connected with the first floor by a series of four atriums, running the length of the building, which allowed daylight down into the centre. In fine weather motors allowed these glass roofs to open. The first floor was later converted to offices and is now a bingo and gaming hall and a bowling alley. Three of the glass roofs are now sealed and not visible from inside.

EXTERIOR: the principal, eastern front was designed to face towards the portico of the rebuilt Metropolitan Tabernacle, with which it is on line. At lower ground level the walls were formerly plate glass shop windows, but are now mostly boarded or solid. At upper-ground floor level the cladding is 6ft by 4ft green, stove-enamelled steel panels. These have vertical slit windows, rather like breathers in a barn, and formerly extended to the first floor too. However, in 1979 they were replaced by GRC panels at the upper level . These upper panels project slightly in front of the lower walling. At some stage the lower, metal cladding has also been covered with further panels, but these maintain the original pattern of slit-window glazing. The upper-ground-floor entrance is by a ramp which leads up to a bridge and a wide set of glazed doors at the centre. To right and left of centre are projecting fire escape towers, each with bowed ends and grey cladding which were added at the end of the C20. There is also an exposed iron fire escape at right of centre.

The southern front has an elaborate sweeping ramp which curves around as it leads to the upper and lower ground floors. Entrances at the centre of both these floors are glazed with metal surrounds. The front has a recessed podium covered with rectangular, brown tiles and the upper ground floor has a series of large, plate-glass windows lighting the shop at left and the restaurant to the right. The restaurant also has a glazed extension, and at far right is a projecting fire escape tower with bowed end and grey cladding, as before.

The northern front has a similar arrangement to the southern front, with plate glass shop windows and doors at both of the lower levels. Ramps and landings connect to the entrances and also to the underpass system. To the left of the front is a later, projecting service block which rises the full height of the building and is covered with cladding panels. This in turn connects to the former Charlie Chaplin pub (described separately).

The eastern flank of the building has yellow brick walling to its upper body, laid in English bond with the concrete floors plainly expressed. Rectangular ventilation grilles are regularly spaced to the lower two levels and windows to the top level. A service road and entrance, approached through two of the arches of the railway viaduct, lead to a ramp, with shuttered concrete retaining walls to its sides, which descends to the upper and lower basement levels which house two levels of car parking and the internal service road and four delivery bays, where lifts connect upwards to shop premises.

The north-western and south-western corners of the shopping centre have large, rectangular indents, which were planned from the beginning to give space to advertising posters and signs, as required under the original brief. The north and south sides continue to have advertising posters here.

INTERIOR: early photographs show the walkways to have been public spaces, with flowerbeds, fixed seating and concrete paving slabs. Terrazzo was used for the stairs but this later spread to all of the flooring of the walkways at both lower and upper ground-floor levels. Shop fronts have a variety of designs, but the majority have plate glass with aluminium or stainless steel surrounds, and many appear to be original. Supporting pillars are masked by painted metal plates. Ceilings are suspended. Other than the standardised shop fronts, few of the premises retain their original fittings. The top floor, which was changed from retail space to offices and is now a bingo parlour and superbowl, has a wide expanse of floor space. It is lit entirely by artificial light and the ribbon glazing which was installed in 1975, now lights a service corridor which runs around the periphery of the floor.

HANNIBAL HOUSE

An office block of eleven storeys, built in 1960-1965, to the designs of Paul Boissevain (1922-2014) and Barbara Osmond (1922-1975).

MATERIALS: the block has a reinforced concrete body with open floors of hollow pot construction with longitudinal beam strips. Reinforced concrete service cores provide wind bracing. The adaptable interior space is divided by lightweight partition walls. Solid walling below the windows is of cinder blocks, covered externally by spandrel panels. Curtain walling is supported by a structure of aluminium H-beams.

PLAN: the rectangular building is oriented east-west, by way of contrast with the shopping centre below, which runs in the opposite direction. The office block runs the full width of the shopping centre and both share the same grid pattern of square pillars set at intervals of 24ft, but the building is planned so that curtain walling stands in front of the piers, giving an impression of light weight to the exterior of the block.

EXTERIOR: the lowest of the eleven storeys of the office block is recessed on its east and west sides, to create a break with the shops below, but the ten storeys above this all adhere to the line of the shopping centre wall. The curtain walling has an aluminium frame with a four foot module which holds closely-set rectangular panes of glass. The alternating windows which open have discrete fastenings, so that all fenestration appears to be equal from a distance. Soffit panels are coloured grey. At the top, and surrounding the block is a screen wall which hides the service equipment on the roof.

INTERIOR: floors have service cores to the centre of the building, with stairs, lavatories and kitchens. A variety of partition walls has been inserted, including timber-framed and glass-walled, according to evolving patterns of use, and ceilings are all suspended. Panelled heating units are fitted beneath the windows and run around the floors in uninterrupted lines.