NATIONAL TRUST

Project: CHARTWELL HOUSE TELEPHONE EXCHANGE
Client: MAD RIVER
Processes: REPRODUCTION CABINET MAKING, PERIOD FURNITURE, INTERACTIVE AV

We worked alongside creative agency, Mad River, to create a nostalgic blast from the past for the National Trust: an interactive 1940s switchboard and television set to sit proudly in the private office of Winston Churchill’s former residence, Chartwell House in Kent.

Based on an original photograph of the room, this project was all about balancing modern interactive technology with period design. That meant using traditional cabinet making techniques to get the look and feel spot on. The result is a beautifully produced period switchboard and television set that visitors can interact with both visually and audibly; when they pick up the phone and flick the switchboard, they were put through to audio footage of Churchill’s secretaries. Additionally, the television set screened footage of heads of state from the period.

Set within Winston Churchill’s private office and personal command centre, it was certainly worthy of the National Trust’s reputation for balancing aesthetic authenticy with visitor interaction and education.