Bush House

This article is about the building in London. For the building in Bristol, see Arnolfini, Bristol. For other uses, see Bush House (disambiguation).

Bush House
Bush House viewed from Kingsway
Bush House is located in Central London
Bush House
Location within Central London
General information
LocationAldwych, City of Westminster, London
CountryUnited Kingdom
Coordinates51°30′45.9″N 0°07′02.2″W / 51.512750°N 0.117278°W / 51.512750; -0.117278
Current tenantsKing's College London
Construction started1925
Completed1935
OwnerKato Kagaku[1]
Design and construction
Architect(s)Harvey W. Corbett
DesignationsGrade II listed building
References
OS grid TQ 307 810
"Bush House description"
Audio description of Bush House by Zoë Wanamaker
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Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London, England. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, funded, and constructed under his direction. The design was approved in 1919, work began in 1925, and was completed in 1935. Erected in stages, by 1929 Bush House was already declared the "most expensive building in the world".[2]

Now part of the Strand Campus of King's College London, Bush House previously served as the headquarters of the BBC World Service. Broadcasting from Bush House lasted for 70 years, from winter 1941 to summer 2012. The final BBC broadcast from Bush House was the 12 noon BST news bulletin on 12 July 2012. The BBC World Service is now housed in Broadcasting House in Portland Place.[3] King's College London has taken over the premises since acquiring the lease in 2015.[4][5][6]

The longtime occupation[7] of part of Bush House by HM Revenue and Customs (and its predecessor department the Inland Revenue) ended in March 2021 when it vacated the South-West Wing.[8] This wing will also become a part of King's College London's Strand Campus, ensuring all wings of the building are now occupied by the University.

  1. ^ "Bush House opens doors on interior for the future". BBC News. 30 October 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  2. ^ BBC Buildings: Bush House Archived 29 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine. BBC. (1 January 1970).
  3. ^ "BBC World Service - The Documentary, Goodbye To Bush House, Episode 1". BBC.
  4. ^ Historic England. "BUSH HOUSE CENTRE BLOCK WITH FLANKING COLONNADES (1066492)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
  5. ^ Jack Grove (2015) Ed Byrne: 'new address is a defining moment for king's college london'. Times Higher Education accessed 10 September 2015
  6. ^ Jack Grove (2015) King's College London to use former BBC World Service HQ. Times Higher Education accessed 10 September 2015
  7. ^ "Revenue Buildings - Hansard". Hansard.parliament.uk.
  8. ^ "List of proposed HMRC office closures". Bbc.co.uk. 12 November 2015.