The Langham Hilton Hotel, W1
Type hotel, office
Size 32,500m2 (350,000ft2)
Client Ladbroke Group Plc
Status completed
Scheme description
The Langham Hotel was opened in 1865 and was once one of the grandest hotels in London.
The Ladbroke Group purchased the building in 1986 with a view to restoring it to its former splendour. Ladbroke’s acquisition of Hilton International in 1987 gave the building a new name, the “Ladbroke Hilton”.
We devised an ingenious scheme retaining and refurbishing the two principal wings while demolishing and redeveloping the South and West wings. This provided 400 rooms of the highest quality. The first section of the work involved traditional building techniques to refurbish the complex external envelope and recreate the bomb damaged tower and dome. The second section consisted of a fast-track construction programme using a lightweight steel frame including extensive off-site fabrication.
In order to reduce the construction programme Halpern designed 'pod' bathroom units which were
pre-fabricated and shipped to site as completely sealed elements ready for final connection to services.
The result is an entirely renovated building covering an entire city block in Central London. The complex interlinking of old and new spaces and services works seamlessly from one area to another and looks perfectly natural in the context of the 130 year old building. Weaving together the old with the new in tight urban situations demands great skill and patience, qualities which the office has demonstrated in this complex project.
