Express Lift Tower - Definition and Overview

The Express Lift Tower is a former lift testing tower built by the Express Lift Company off the Weedon Road in Northampton, England. The structure was commissioned in 1978 with construction commencing in 1980, and was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II in November 1982.

Designed by architect Maurice Walton of Stimpson and Walton, the tower is 127.45 metres (418.1 feet) tall, 14.6m (47.9ft) in diameter but tapers to 8.5m (27.9ft) at the top. The only lift testing tower in Britain, it was granted Grade II listed building status on October 30 1997, at the time making it the tallest and youngest listed building in the UK.

It gained the nickname "The Northampton Lighthouse" from broadcaster Terry Wogan on his BBC Radio 2 programme. The building has never been open to the general public.

In January 1997, the tower fell out of use after Express Lifts was taken over by Otis and subsequently closed. In 1999, the tower and surrounding land was sold to Wilcon Homes for development. The building has been threatened with demolition after being found to have so-called "concrete cancer", but this plan faced strong opposition from local people, and as of 2004 the tower's future is uncertain.

External links

• BBC Legacies: Northampton's "Lighthouse" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/heritage/england/northants/article_1.shtml)
• Architectural details (http://www.mbp-uk.com/projects/expresstower.html)
• Risky Buildings: Express Lift Tower (http://www.riskybuildings.org.uk/docs/16lift/)
• BBC: 360 degree panorama from tower (http://www.bbc.co.uk/northamptonshire/360/tower.shtml)