Marco Polo House
Encyclopedia
Marco Polo House is a large marble- and glass-clad office building at 346 Queenstown Road facing Battersea Park
in the London Borough of Wandsworth
. It was built in 1987, to a design by postmodernist
architect Ian Pollard.
It was originally home to British Satellite Broadcasting
(BSB) television in the late 1980s, and took its name from its first owner's Marcopolo satellites. Part of the building was also used by The Observer
newspaper until the newspaper moved into the offices of its parent, The Guardian
. When BSB merged with Sky
to form BSkyB
the new company kept the lease, and in 1993 the building became home to shopping channel QVC
's studios and offices.
The building also used as the offices for another ill-fated broadcaster, ONdigital, the UK's first digital terrestrial television broadcaster from 1998. The company was re-launched in 2001 as ITV Digital
.
The grey and white striped Marble faced building is split into two blocks, covering 157357 square feet (14,619 m²) and is visible from trains to and from Victoria station.
bus depot, where its neighbours would include fellow broadcasters CBS
and Discovery Channel
.
Press reports suggested that Marco Polo house would be demolished, and replaced with a 12-storey mixed office and luxury housing development. Marco Polo House's architect Pollard told the Architects Journal the plan was a move towards a "lower grade of architecture", adding: "Marco was a fun building. It was quite an iconic at the time and some people still say it is." Others said it was "Postmodern nonsense". The Architects Journal's Merlin Fulcher told London's Evening Standard
: "The new scheme looks decent, but it's always a shame to see an iconic structure knocked down, especially one that symbolises Eighties post-modernism so well."
Battersea Park
Battersea Park is a 200 acre green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in England. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea, and was opened in 1858....
in the London Borough of Wandsworth
London Borough of Wandsworth
The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...
. It was built in 1987, to a design by postmodernist
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
architect Ian Pollard.
It was originally home to British Satellite Broadcasting
British Satellite Broadcasting
British Satellite Broadcasting was a British television company which provided direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom...
(BSB) television in the late 1980s, and took its name from its first owner's Marcopolo satellites. Part of the building was also used by The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
newspaper until the newspaper moved into the offices of its parent, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. When BSB merged with Sky
Sky Television plc
Sky Television plc was a public limited company which operated its four-channel satellite television service, launched by Rupert Murdoch's News International on 5 February 1989...
to form BSkyB
British Sky Broadcasting
British Sky Broadcasting Group plc is a satellite broadcasting, broadband and telephony services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, with operations in the United Kingdom and the Ireland....
the new company kept the lease, and in 1993 the building became home to shopping channel QVC
QVC (UK)
QVC UK is a digital television shopping channel broadcast in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1993 when QVC, Inc. formed a deal with Sky TV to create a UK version of the US channel. "QVC — The Shopping Channel" first broadcast in the UK on 1 October 1993. QVC UK - 20% owned by Sky - moved into...
's studios and offices.
The building also used as the offices for another ill-fated broadcaster, ONdigital, the UK's first digital terrestrial television broadcaster from 1998. The company was re-launched in 2001 as ITV Digital
ITV Digital
ITV Digital was a British digital terrestrial television broadcaster, which launched a pay-TV service on the world's first digital terrestrial television network as ONdigital in 1998 and briefly re-branded as ITV Digital in July 2001, before the service ceased in May 2002. Its main shareholders...
.
The grey and white striped Marble faced building is split into two blocks, covering 157357 square feet (14,619 m²) and is visible from trains to and from Victoria station.
Possible demolition
After a Russian consortium bought the freehold for for more than £60m in 2006, QVC decided not to renew its lease when it expired in 2012. The channel looked for alternative location - including in several Northern cities - for its 500 head office staff and studio centre. The channel's management ended deciding to move in April 2011 to 126000 sq ft (11,706 m²) in a one of 12 buildings at Chiswick Park, in West London in a campus-style development on the site of a derelict London TransportLondon Transport
London Transport could refer to:*London Transport Transport authorities that operated services under the brand:*London Passenger Transport Board *London Transport Executive *London Transport Board...
bus depot, where its neighbours would include fellow broadcasters CBS
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
and Discovery Channel
Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications, Inc. is an American global media and entertainment company. The company started as a single channel in 1985, The Discovery Channel. Today, DCI has global operations offering 28 network entertainment brands on more than 100 channels in more than 180 countries in 39...
.
Press reports suggested that Marco Polo house would be demolished, and replaced with a 12-storey mixed office and luxury housing development. Marco Polo House's architect Pollard told the Architects Journal the plan was a move towards a "lower grade of architecture", adding: "Marco was a fun building. It was quite an iconic at the time and some people still say it is." Others said it was "Postmodern nonsense". The Architects Journal's Merlin Fulcher told London's Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
: "The new scheme looks decent, but it's always a shame to see an iconic structure knocked down, especially one that symbolises Eighties post-modernism so well."