Architecture News Plus (ANP) – Architecture and Design Magazine

W London, Leicester Square

This is a project by Jestico + Whiles and it is located at London, United Kingdom. Project's program: Mixed-use development. There are nine images for W London, Leicester Square.

: © Hufton & Crow

Project details

Project name: W London, Leicester Square
Location: London, United Kingdom
Program: Mixed-use development
Area: Project size: 200,000 sf
Year: Completion: January 2011
Client: McAleer & Rushe Group
Project by: Jestico + Whiles
Team: Principal designers: John Whiles, James Dilley
Others: Interior design: Concrete Architectural Associates • Contractor: McAleer & Rushe Group

Project images

Designer's statement

W London is a landmark 192 bedroom, 5 Star hotel in the heart of London’s West End, developed by McAleer and Rushe. In addition to the hotel, the new ten-storey building houses retail, leisure and residential accommodation spread over 200,000 square feet, including a spa, 11 penthouse apartments and two basement levels accommodating a new retail-leisure experience provided by a leading global brand.

The façade is veiled in translucent glass suspended off the face of the building like a floating sheer curtain, evoking the cinematic heritage of this part of the West End. This veil functions like a huge pixel screen, the first of its kind in the UK. It allows the presence of the building to alter as day turns to night.

Internally, the design responds innovatively to the constrictions of the site by ‘pulling back’ certain blocks of rooms into the building envelope on each floor. This allows for the creation of dramatic double and triple height atria within the building, enhancing the sense of space and theatre throughout the entire hotel.

The interiors, which have been designed by Concrete Architectural Associates, aim to offer guests a quintessential experience of London culture, by combining the formal and frivolous spheres of city life into one idiosyncratic experience. In a mix of traditional and contemporary materials, comfortable and cutting-edge design, Concrete’s interiors represent the ever-evolving face of London glamour.

Guests make their entrance underneath a disco ball cloud sculpture made of 280 disco balls, surrounded by black glass walls. On the left side of the entrance, Concrete’s Spice Market restaurant mixes the ethnic vintage feel of Spice Market New York to the contemporary architecture of the new building. Once inside, visitors are led through the first floor reception atrium into Wyld, the stylish destination bar overlooking Leicester Square, providing an ideal location or back drop for film-premiere interviews. To maximise activity at street level, the lower floors of the building are occupied by shops, bars and restaurants, whilst the hotel entrance has been carefully located off Wardour Street to offer guests a personal and exclusive access route into the hotel.