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Griff Rhys Jones opposes plans to ‘choke’ Liverpool Street station | Heritage

Griff Rhys Jones is leading a coalition of conservationists against what he describes as plans to “smother” Liverpool Street station under 109 meters (350 feet) of new offices, shops and a hotel.

The comedian, writer and broadcaster has been appointed president of the relaunched Liverpool Street Station Campaign (Lissca), a post conducted in the 1970s by the then Poet Laureate Sir John Betjeman when he led a successful crusade against plans to demolish the station.

Developers, including Network railway and Sellar, who were both behind London’s Shard, say the scheme will protect and showcase the nearby Grade II-listed station and the former Great Eastern Hotel, which is Grade II* listed.

Rhys Jones, however, said it was “nonsense”. Speaking from the hotel, he said: “They can’t improve this environment by sticking a giant hat on it. It’s like putting a giant clown hat on top of St Paul’s Cathedral.’

Rendering of the office, shop and hotel plans to the side and above Liverpool Street Station

The scheme envisages 16-storey office blocks flanking the station, and retail space and a hotel above it.

Rhys Jones said: “What they’re planning to do is radical and unprecedented – take a world-class monument and instead of destroying it, they’re just going to bury it. 16-storey buildings are being built on top. It will completely change the character of Liverpool Street station. It’s just suffocating.”

Rhys Jones has questioned the rationale behind the scheme, which developers say is needed to improve access to the station. “This is an exploitative opportunistic scheme for making huge amounts of money. They try it at every level. People need to look very carefully at the perceived need for this because the real need, like the Shard, is for Network Rail to make money.’

Lissca’s campaign was revived after a rare show of unity by various conservation groups opposing the plans, which they believe are insensitive and harmful.

Rhys Jones said: “I am just adding a voice to an extraordinary unity of concern. All the major heritage sector bodies are horrified by what is being proposed. They all want to keep the superb London landmark I have rarely seen such uniformity.”

The campaign brings together eight conservation groups led by the Victorian Society and includes the Georgian Group, the Twentieth Century Society and Save Britain Heritage.

Plans by Herzog & de Meuron, the Swiss architects behind Tate Modern and the National Stadium in Beijing, involve converting some of the former Great Eastern Hotel, now the Andaz Hotel, into offices. As part of the plan, the recently listed 1990s railway shed which connects the Victorian part of the station to the hotel will be partially demolished.

Rhys Jones describes Liverpool Street as “my London station” as he often uses it to travel from his home in Suffolk to the capital. He hopes other celebrities will join the reformed Lissca. “In the 1970s, committee members included Betjeman, [the historian] Sir Nicholas Pevsner and [the comedian] Spike Milligan. They saved these spaces for us then. We hope that the same giants will join us in 50 years. It seems incredible to me that we need to renew their struggle.”

In a statement, Lissca feared that if the scheme was granted planning permission, “it would set a terrible precedent that would mean no listed building is safe from harm”.

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The Georgian group said the scheme would jeopardize the important role St Paul’s plays in London’s skyline. Historic Buildings and Places said it would “destroy one of the last cohesive Victorian streetscapes in this part of London”. And the Twentieth Century Society said it would “deface this iconic gateway to London forever”.

Rhys Jones said he is not against modern buildings and that he likes many of London’s newest skyscrapers. But he added: “They cannot be done by destroying the history of London. I am doing this for my grandchildren’s grandchildren. And we need to preserve what we know is a true example of our history – there is nothing more telling than the railway age that tells the story of Britain.’

Campaign participants too launched a petition saying that “the greed of developers cannot defeat the need for commuter traffic.”

A spokesman for the developers, which include Sellar and Network Rail, said: “The station, which was saved by a Victorian society in the 1970s, no longer exists as much of it was demolished in the 1980s. Our approach prioritizes the protection and enhancement of the surviving heritage elements of both the Andaz Hotel and the station itself.

“The Victorian elements of the station are not being demolished. We are working closely with key stakeholders to try and integrate the commercial elements of the project, which will ultimately unlock £450m of much-needed infrastructure improvements that will alleviate significant access and congestion issues, while providing significant passenger capacity and customer convenience without cost to taxpayers or train passengers.

“Our proposals will secure the future of Liverpool Street Station as a major transport hub and create a new seven-day-a-week destination for the city.”

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/feb/03/griff-rhys-jones-rails-against-plans-to-smother-liverpool-street-station

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