Hippodrome, London

The hippodrome first opened as a circus variety theatre in 1900. In it's latest incarnation it is  a stylish international super casino, theatre and dining venue

During the £40 million restoration of the Hippodrome in Leicester square we worked alongside the main contractor for many months providing decorative  brass features.

The VIP lift.

The largest single element of this project in which we were involved was the stripping down and complete restoration of the original 1930's lift shaft. To bring the cage up to modern building safety standards in an attractive way that suited the period of the original structure we lined the entire length of the inside of the shaft  with panels of hand woven brass wire hand knuckled onto brass rod frames using the same methods and tooling that would have been used if the job had been done 100 years ago. Every one of over 90 large panels was different. Every step of the stair case that surrounds the shaft protrudes beyond the bannister meaning that the bottom panels on every level had to be fitted snugly around the the profile of every step and nosing.   The result was so attractive that a glass sided, 5-person 357kg hydraulic scenic bespoke lift was installed so that the brass work could also be seen from the inside. The lift itself was fitted with direct-acting hydraulics using a telescopic ram so that no modern mechanical workings could spoil the view within  the shaft. This lift travels from the ground floor over 4 further floors and is used primarily for VIPs.