sign in sign up
<<
Home , British Library, Colin St John Wilson, Euston Road

The British at St Pancras Building the future Introduction: an evolving building

In January this year we published our new We want the Library – one of the great public This brochure introduces our vision to reorient strategy, Living Knowledge, which has at its buildings of the 20th century and now a and expand this magnificent building’s capabilities heart a vision of the becoming Grade I listed building – to evolve into one so that we are better able to anticipate and meet the most open, creative and innovative institution of the world’s great knowledge hubs for the the needs of our users, our local community and of its kind in the world by the time of our 50th 21st century. Our physical spaces are now the wider national and international network anniversary in 2023. Our ambitions for our St reaching capacity and our exhibition galleries of . Working in tandem with our other Pancras site are central to achieving that vision. are able to display only a fraction of the major facility at in , we treasures that we hold. The huge success of want St Pancras to drive the next stage of the Since we opened our doors to users on recent exhibitions on Comics, Propaganda, British Library’s evolution as a global player in Monday 24 November 1997, the British Library Gothic and highlights the knowledge economy. at St Pancras has become an icon of the a growing public appetite for engaging with our information age. collections – if we could only expose a greater It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to proportion of them, whether on-site and online. transform the way we use the site and, with The architect of this remarkable building, the the involvement of the right partners, create late Sir (Sandy, as he was Over the same period, our surrounding a technologically enabled civic space that widely known) devoted 37 years of his career to neighbourhood has undergone a transformation combines creativity, versatility and commercial its design and construction. He described how a of its own, with the opening of the Eurostar sustainability. Whether you are a user, a great library “is like a coral reef whose exquisite terminal at St Pancras, the ongoing redevelopment neighbour or a potential partner I hope structure as it grows proliferates a living network of King’s Cross and the emerging cluster of you find something here to inspire you of connections.” world-class knowledge and research institutions to explore further. dubbed the Knowledge Quarter within a mile’s We aim to fulfil Sandy Wilson’s vision, increasing radius of the . our ability to share our collections for research, inspiration and enjoyment, while retaining the Roly Keating Library’s distinctive character – the feeling of Chief Executive being a city within a city, with its unmistakable ambience of purposeful industry and exploration.

Left: A Map of the Parish of Saint Pancras, situated in the County of Middlesex (detail). The British Library’s present-day location is shown in the centre of the page. Maps K.Top.28.16.a J. Thompson , 1804.

2 1 An opportunity for partnership

To achieve our Living Knowledge goal of We seek a partner that can make our vision our spaces and open up our collections. Support transforming the British Library at St Pancras for the St Pancras site a reality, helping us to from a variety of different sources will be vital to we are seeking a commercial partner to develop consolidate the Library’s position as a global the success of this ambitious vision, and we are 2.8 acres at the northern end of our estate, centre for knowledge, enterprise and creativity, keen to engage potential supporters and donors adjacent to The , where there will always be a new opportunity from the start. opposite the Midland Road entrance to for research and exploration, performance, St Pancras Station. debate and collaboration. Our position at the heart of the Knowledge The Francis Crick Institute Quarter, in one of the fastest-growing areas Somers Town At the heart of this development will be new Along with commercial partners, this in this great world city, makes this one of the spaces of exceptional architectural quality and development is also an opportunity for most exciting development opportunities in a distinction, which will support the Library’s philanthropic partners, trusts and foundations generation. purposes in research, culture, learning and to contribute or work with us to transform business support, as well as a brand new headquarters for our partners at the Insitute, the UK’s major new centre for ‘big data’ research.

Our partner, who will be selected through a competitive dialogue tender over the course of the next few months, will take a long-term lease on the development, with the opportunity Land for development to design and build major new spaces for commercial uses that align with the Library’s purposes and values, and those of the Camden community.

Right: Aerial photograph showing the British Library in relation to, from left, Euston Station, Somers Town, St Pancras International Station and King’s Cross Station. Opposite: Aerial photograph illustrating the 2.8 acres of British Library St Pancras International land available for development. Photos by Ian Hay.

2 3 More than 150 million items A world-class resource in multiple formats Annual growth – physical: The British Library is one of the world’s greatest research libraries. Our mission is to make our 800,000 new items intellectual heritage accessible to everyone for (12 kilometres) research, inspiration and enjoyment. Annual growth – digital: Famously, we collect a copy of every book, 80 terabytes journal, and newspaper published in the UK, and since 2013 we have archived every Over 2 billion pages .uk domain website, along with hundreds of of UK web content thousands of e-journal articles, e-books and other digital publications. More than 1.6 million on-site visits each year The Library therefore plays an integral role in the UK’s research infrastructure: researchers 10% increase in visits consult more than a million collection items a in the year to December 2014 year in our 11 Reading Rooms, and in recent years we’ve seen remarkable growth in use of Over our public areas, as we have evolved them to 16,000 people suit new patterns of study, business and use the collections each day collaborative research. (on-site and online) On-site space for over 1,200 Readers

Nearly 400,000 people visit our Reading Rooms each year

Economic value of £419 million

Sites at St Pancras, London; Stockton-on-Tees and Left: The British Library at St Pancras, July 2015. Photo by Tony Antoniou; Right: The National Boston Spa, Newspaper Building in Boston Spa. Photo by Katie Betts.

4 5 Adapting to a fast-changing world The British Library’s purposes Our vision for St Pancras is driven by • Our digital, sound and vision collections have a number of interrelated trends: expanded massively over the past decade; we need purpose-built spaces in which people can • Research is changing. Alongside our traditional explore, work with and enjoy these collections. 1 Custodianship Reading Rooms, where registered users We build, curate and can access our physical collections, there is • King’s Cross St Pancras is one of the fastest- preserve the UK’s national increasing demand for more flexible spaces, growing areas in Europe right now; we need to collection of published, where researchers can collaborate and interact reconfigure our site to meet the demands of a written and digital content with others. large and diverse audience of potential users. 2 Research • The public appetite for culture is at an all- • We want to broaden the spectrum of We support and stimulate time high, yet our existing gallery spaces allow experiences and facilities available to visitors, research of all kinds us to expose only a tiny fraction of our vast with a wider selection of shops and places collections. We need creative spaces that will to eat and drink, that fit with the unique 3 Business enable deeper engagement with many more of atmosphere of the Library. the global cultural and intellectual treasures We help businesses we hold, and a new generation of versatile • We also want to engage more deeply with to innovate and grow educational spaces to cope with growing the communities of Camden and Somers demand from learners of all ages. Town, attracting more local people into the 4 Culture building and enhancing the lives of people of We engage everyone with • Business users have become a core part of the all ages and backgrounds in our immediate memorable cultural experiences Library’s audience, with increasing needs not neighbourhood. just for up-to-date information and advice but 5 Learning also for the spaces that allow them to develop We inspire young people their ideas and grow their enterprises. and learners of all ages

6 International We work with partners around the world to advance knowledge and mutual understanding

The British Library at St Pancras – a busy and popular building. Photos by Tony Antoniou and Richard Eaton.

6 7 An iconic building

The new development will extend and complement Its grand interior is flooded with ambient natural one of the UK’s greatest public buildings, so must light and fitted out for a design life of centuries, reflect the existing architecture’s commitment to rather than decades: natural materials that are, excellence, practicality and longevity. in Sandy Wilson’s words, “responsive to human presence and touch – leather, marble, bronze, Sir Colin St John Wilson described the design wood.” At the heart of the front hall is the and construction of his masterpiece, the British spectacular King’s Library, a seven storey tower Library, as ‘my Thirty Years War’. It was the of glass and bronze, housing the beautifully largest UK public building project of the 20th bound library of George III. century and, in terms of the length of time it took to build and the controversy surrounding its The ambience of purposeful industry that creation, nothing like it had been seen in Britain characterises the Reading Rooms is something since the construction of St Paul’s Cathedral. we wish to preserve and complement, rather than replace. We want to enable the next stage in the The recent Grade I listing of the building was building’s evolution, keeping faith with Sandy seen by many as a vindication of Sandy Wilson’s Wilson’s vision of a great – like courageous and visionary design. Writing in the English language, “demonstrating the greatest , Jonathan Morrison described it as capacity for change, yet remaining itself.” “an overwhelming success with the people it was designed for – the readers,” praising its fusion of a Victorian public-service ethos with the democratic Scandinavian influence of Alvar “The British Library is one of ’s Aalto, and observing that the Library “embodies finest modern public buildings. Colin a quiet brilliance that speaks volumes.” St John Wilson’s stately yet accessible design incorporates fine materials The red brick exterior – chosen because it is the only material in our climate that improves and a generous display of public art. with age – echoes the spires of neighbouring St The Library’s dramatic and carefully

Pancras, while the bricks themselves came from considered interiors achieve its the same source in Leicestershire. The Piazza is ultimate goal: of creating a space “ a haven from the noise and bustle of the Euston to inspire thought and learning. Road, offering a space for rendezvous and Roger Bowdler relaxation: in the winter, a venue for brightly-lit Director of Listing at , Above: The British Library at St Pancras, facing north; markets, in summer, for live performances and announcing the Grade 1 listing of the Below: The Library, facing south. (St Pancras International outdoor meetings. St Pancras building, August 2015 can be seen on the left). Photos by Tony Antoniou.

8 9 AN ICONIC BUILDING Shots of the St Pancras interior, especially interiors, Reading Rooms and bust of Sandy Wilson

PAGE 11 AN ICONIC BUILDING We will achieve this vision while also protecting the magnificent building and the Reading Rooms at its heart, fulfilling the promise of Sandy Wilson’s original vision for the Library while securing its future as a viable and vibrant institution.

This page: Drawing of the new building from Ossulston Street by Sir Colin St John Wilson c.1991. BLWA 105; Right: Architectural features of the British Library at St Pancras. Photos by Tony Antoniou.

10 11 At the heart of the Knowledge Quarter

This development will be at the very centre of The transformed Library will act as a gateway one of the most dynamic and rapidly-changing into this evolving network for researchers, parts of London – the area within a one-mile spin-out firms and industry – we are now at radius of King’s Cross. the beating heart of the Knowledge Quarter and our site needs to open up to new possibilities Right next to the Library, The Francis Crick for meeting, collaborative working, creativity, Institute has risen swiftly – within the next 18 research and partnership. months it will become one of the world’s leading centres of biomedical research. Just across the The local communities that surround us, and of road from our site, the Eurostar terminal at which we are an important part, will also benefit St Pancras carries ten million passengers a year as our public programmes and activities for to and from the continent – travellers, tourists schools and young learners expand and develop. and business people pouring through what has We seek a fuller and richer engagement with the become one of Europe’s major transport hubs. diverse communities of Camden, Somers Town These two developments are outriders for a and King’s Cross, connecting people from any much wider trend. The Library now finds itself and every background with treasures we hold at the heart of one of the greatest concentrations that reflect all languages and all cultures. of knowledge-based activity and expertise anywhere in the world.

Last year we saw the launch of the Knowledge Quarter, a partnership of more than 50 academic, cultural, research, scientific and media organisations – all based within a mile’s radius of the Euston Road. Google, the , the University of the Arts London, , the British and the Royal College of Physicians are just a few of the organisations involved, and in the coming years we’ll work together to promote and further develop our shared neighbourhood, seeking out new opportunities for collaboration Right above: View of Somers Town, looking north. Photo and innovation. by Tony Antoniou; Right below: Outside the British Library on Euston Road. Photo by David Hares; Opposite: Map showing our Knowledge Quarter partners.

12 13 The

On 4 December 2014, at the official launch The purpose of the Institute is to promote “The Institute will bring of the Knowledge Quarter, the Chancellor the development and use of advanced George Osborne also announced that the mathematics, computer science, algorithms benefits to the whole country £42 million Alan Turing Institute – the UK’s and ‘big data’ for the benefit of society and national institute for data sciences – would the economy. The location of the Institute through partnerships with be based at the British Library at St Pancras. reinforces the importance of the Knowledge universities and businesses Quarter, and cements the British Library’s For now, staff of the Institute are based within status as a vital element of the UK’s across Britain, including in the existing Library building, but a key element knowledge infrastructure. of the programme to transform the St Pancras our great northern cities, to site will be to build a permanent home for the For the first time, an independent body better understand and exploit Alan Turing Institute as part of the development undertaking world-class research will be of our campus. based within the boundaries of our site, the amazing opportunities utilising our collections and working Named in honour of the pioneering collaboratively with our own experts, presented by big data. mathematician and code-breaker, the Alan with other Knowledge Quarter members Turing Institute is a joint venture between and with partners across the UK. the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research It’s a fitting tribute to Alan Council and five leading universities selected The opportunities to make connections, Turing – the father of modern for their world-leading expertise and advance knowledge and achieve experience in the field of data science: breakthroughs will be immense. computer science and a , , , University

College London and Warwick. national hero – and will

ensure Britain continues to lead the whole world“ in this important field.

Chancellor George Osborne announcing the location of the Alan Turing Left: An early example of data visualisation: Cholera Coxcombs Institute at the British Library, December 2014 by William Farr. Report on the Mortality of Cholera in England 1848 – 49. General Reference Collection B.S.34/12. Right: Chancellor George Osborne announcing the location of the Alan Turing Institute at the British Library, December 2014.

14 15 A British Library for the future

By adapting and expanding the British Library For business – the value and power of an Want to know more? at St Pancras, we want to transform our ability open and free library reaches far beyond the to meet and anticipate the needs of a range of traditional research audience; we will build growing audiences. on a decade of success for our Business & IP Please contact us by: Centre, expanding and developing our offer For research – we will provide versatile and to entrepreneurs and SMEs, and becoming Email technologically enabled spaces which connect an incubator space for start-ups as well as [email protected] researchers with our own collections and the connecting them to the information and wider national and international network of guidance vital to fledgling businesses. resources; the headquarters of the Alan Turing Freephone Institute for Data Sciences will be part of this For culture – visitors will be able to experience 0800 470 4593 development, embedding world-class data more of the collection than was ever previously research on-site at the Library for the first time. possible, in spaces that encourage encounters that also involve debate, performance and Post For learning – we want to be able to always curatorial interpretation. Our collections are Freepost BRITISH LIBRARY say yes to school groups of every size, age and as multicultural and multilingual as the city (please ensure ‘Freepost’ is included in address) background, creating spaces that enable an around us, and we want our visitor audience inspiring first encounter with their cultural and to be every bit as diverse as the collections we intellectual heritage, generating an appetite for care for. We also want to offer individuals self-directed research and debate. and families a full day’s worth of activity and inspiration, consolidating the Library’s position as one of the great UK visitor destinations and enabling people to connect with a universe of written and recorded heritage, whatever their background may be. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to work with

the British Library to help us Opposite page, clockwise from top left: A-Level transform not just this building, students taking part in a workshop. Photo by Richard Eaton; Late event at the British Library as but the whole way we serve part of Propaganda season, 2013. Photo by Tom Lewis Russell; Kathryn Parsons speaking at Internet Cover image: photo montage of Sir Colin St John Wilson’s the researchers, visitors and Icons event, February 2014. Photo by Luca Sage; c.1991 drawing of the new building from Ossulston Street, Researchers using the British Library’s public spaces. and a view of the St Pancras building in July 2015. communities of the future. Photo and front and back cover by Tony Antoniou. Photo by Tony Antoniou.

16 17 British Library www.bl.uk

18