Three “fantastic buildings” at a Cambridge University college have been listed at Grade II.
Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, said Fitzwilliam College’s Central Hall Building, New Court and Chapel “form a reinterpretation of the traditional Cambridge college”.
Fitzwilliam began in 1869 as a non-collegiate institution, providing Cambridge education to undergraduates who were unable to afford membership of a college.
The Central Hall Building was designed by renowned post-war architect Sir Denys Lasdun as part of his 1960s masterplan for the college.
The striking designs include the hall’s flamboyant gravity-defying lantern, a worship space resembling a floating ship in the Chapel, and in New Court a distinctive stepped design where each floor has a different appearance inside and out.
Mr Wilson said: “These three fantastic buildings form a reinterpretation of the traditional Cambridge college.
“They were designed for an optimistic, forward-looking, post-war England, when university access was rapidly expanding, and new democratic ideals were finding architectural expression.
Rod Cantrill, bursar of Fitzwilliam College, said: “The evolution of the college buildings on our main site in the last 60 years mirrors the maturing of the college’s academic community.
“Our buildings tell our story and show how Fitz does Cambridge a little differently – from the ambitious future thinking of a social hub for the whole of the college community in our Central Hall Building defined by the symbolism of our gravity-defying glass lantern, to our ‘floating’ Chapel, to the characteristically practical and sociable student kitchen spaces in New Court.”
He said that the Grade II listing of “three of our most important buildings represents a ‘coming of age’ for the college’s 20th century buildings”.
Catherine Croft, director of the Twentieth Century Society, said: “Fitzwilliam College Cambridge may not have honey-coloured medieval stone courtyards or be on the banks of the River Cam, but its amazing modern architectural heritage is now recognised by national listing, and its innovative architecture is every bit as inspiring and nurturing as its older rivals.”
