Architect Tate Harmer has won planning permission to convert the grade II* listed shaft of London’s Rotherhithe tunnel into an interpretation and performance space for the Brunel Museum.
The 20-metre deep shaft, which forms part of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s first project, the Thames Tunnel, will be made accessible with the addition of a completely free-standing staircase.
Jerry Tate, director of Tate Harmer, explains that the staircase will be independent of the important historic fabric of the structure as no technical drawings of the shaft exist.
He told Construction Manager: “We can’t attach anything to the walls as no one quite knows what they are made of. We thought that there would be a rubble filled cavity between two brick skins, but two test bores suggest it is a solid brick wall 1.4 metres thick.”
The only “harm” that the project was allowed to do to the building was to cut a door in the shaft to allow access to the space. All of the materials needed for the conversion and construction of the staircase will then have to pass though this opening “like a ship in a bottle”, says Tate.
The 20-metre deep shaft will be made accessible with the addition of a completely free-standing staircase.
The Rotherhithe (or “sinking”) shaft was built by Marc Brunel, Isambard’s father, as the original access point to build the Thames Tunnel, which was the first underwater tunnel in the world. When the tunnel opened in 1843 it was used as a pedestrian crossing under the River Thames.
Now sealed with a concrete floor, following the construction of the East London Line, the 15-metre wide shaft will be fitted with a timber floor. During the day it will be used as interpretation space to teach about the work of both Marc and Isambard Kingdom Brunel and in the evening it will be able to host 135 people for events and performances.
The project £250,000 project, which is being funded by a grant from Biffa and fundraising by the museum, is currently out to tender, with work expected to begin in October, and a scheduled opening date in January.
Tate expressed his honour at working in such a historic location: “We’re so pleased that this project is to become a reality, it’s a rare honour to work in such an important historical setting. We had to respect and protect Brunel’s legacy while providing people the opportunity to enjoy the space in new and exciting ways.”
Robert Hulse, director of the Brunel Museum, said: “We are delighted to be able to forge ahead with our plans to grant a new lease of life to this important piece of engineering history. Brunel was a showman as well as an engineer, and I’m sure he would have approved of holding performances in this new underground gallery. This will be one of the first exciting steps in the Brunel Museum’s ongoing plans to preserve Brunel’s first project and his enduring legacy for the enjoyment of the public.”
In the evening the space will be able to host 135 people for events and performances
