Daily Express Building, Manchester
The Daily Express Building, located on Great Ancoats Street, Manchester, England, is a Grade II* listed building which was designed by engineer Sir Owen Williams. It was built in 1939 to house one of three Daily Express offices; the other two similar buildings are located in London and Glasgow.
| Daily Express Building | |
|---|---|
Express Building | |
Front façade visible from Great Ancoats Street | |
| General information | |
| Type | Office and residential |
| Architectural style | Futurist Art Deco Streamline Moderne |
| Location | Great Ancoats Street, Ancoats, Manchester |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 53.4849°N 2.2313°W |
| Construction started | 1936 |
| Completed | 1939 |
| Renovated | 1960 (extension) 1979 (two-storey extension) 1983 1993–95 (office conversion) 2018 |
| Dimensions | |
| Diameter | 75,600 square feet (7,020 m2) |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | Steel and glass (curtain wall) |
| Floor count | Six-storeys |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Sir Owen Williams |
| Civil engineer | Sir Owen Williams |
| Designations | |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Daily Express Building |
| Designated | 2 October 1974 |
| Reference no. | 1218285 |
The pre-World War II building is notable for its timeless, "space-age" quality and is often mistaken for being much younger than it is due to its futuristic avant garde appearance. The building is futurist art deco, specifically streamline moderne with its horizontal lines and curved corners. It is clad in a combination of opaque and vitrolite glass. It was considered highly radical at the time, and incorporates what was at the time a growing technology, curtain walling.
Unlike the London and Glasgow Express buildings, the Manchester building was designed by the engineer for all three buildings, Sir Owen Williams. It is considered the best of the three Express Buildings, and is admired by architects (such as Norman Foster) and Mancunians alike. The building was Grade II*-listed in 1974, just 35 years after its initial construction, and remains Greater Manchester's youngest II*-listed building.