K3 Telephone Kiosk, London Zoo. Regent's Park. Westminster.

1929 by Giles Gilbert-Scott

Grade II

In Spring 2008 HoLT gave the ZSL London Zoo a grant of £5,000 to restore the crittal windows as part of the successful restoration of the Tropical Birdhouse (originally built as a reptile house in 1882-3). The London Zoo began working on its next major project in 2010, which will include the redevelopment of the Barclay Court area, with improved shopping facilities, visitor exit via regent's park, and a new Penguin Habitat. The Zoo's scheme to redevelop the Penguin Habitat will cost £600,000, while the total costs for all improvements will be £1.5 million. There will be a vastly expanded pool, with naturalistic landscaping. The habitat will also include Fairy Blue Penguins (native to New Zealand and Australia) for the first time.

As part of this project the Zoo to restore their Grade II listed K3 phone box - made of reinforced concrete and designed by Giles Gilbert-Scott as a more cost effective alternative to his first phone box, which was made of cast-iron. The concrete turned out to be too fragile, and few of the original 12,000 K3 boxes now survive - the Zoo's example was the first phone box to be listed in 1986.

The phone kiosk needs to be restored, as there are areas of damaged concrete, and the structure will also need to be re-painted in its original colours of cream with red glazing bars. The cost for the restoration is expected to be £3,000. The Trustees offered a grant of £2,000 towards the restoration in January 2011.

The newly restored telephone box was unveiled in May 2011 when the new Penguin Beach exhibit was opened at London Zoo. HOLT trustee Cllr Robert Davis of Westminster Council (pictured back left) officially opened the Penguin Beach habitat on behalf of London Zoo, and HOLT Chairman Ronnie Barden (centre left) presented a cheque for £2,000 to London Zoo.