HRH The Duke of Gloucester opens the new British High Commission in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

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Richard Murphy guided the Duke of Gloucester around the new British High Commission and attended the opening ceremony on Monday 05 May where speeches were made by the Duke and the High Commissioner, Dr Peter Hayes.

"It gives me great pleasure to open the new High Commission building " the Duke of Gloucester said. "It is a unique blend of modern British architecture and Sri Lankan design influences. Everyone involved in the project should be proud of creating a working environment which is fully accessible, promotes imaginative design, and incorporates innovative ways of saving energy."

Present at the ceremony in the entrance courtyard were both the President and the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. High Commission staff moved into the new building four weeks later and the building opened to the public on 17th June. Pictures of the completed building are expected to be taken in August and will be posted on the project web page.

Haymarket Development given Planning Permission

On 25th June Edinburgh City Council Planning Committee voted by 10 votes to 5 to back our proposals for the large undeveloped former goods yard at Haymarket in the west end of Edinburgh. The project for Tiger Developments consists of a 17 storey 5 star hotel, a 3 star hotel and three offices. The practice is the master-planner of the entire site as well as being the architects of the 5 star hotel and the exteriors of the three offices. CDA are planning the offices and Sutherland Hussey are the architects of the 3 star hotel. The extensive public realm landscaping is by Gross Max. Opposition, in particular to the landmark 5 star hotel, was particularly vocal and the hearing in which Tiger's John Nesbit and Richard Murphy presented the case lasted just under four hours but had a convincing conclusion. Work begins immediately in the office on the hotel with work on site expected at the end of this year.

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Dunfermline Museum given the go-ahead

The practice won this prestigious competition last summer but a change of politics in Fife Council lead to considerable delays in confirming the progress to the next stage. We are delighted that the Council have included the Dunfermline Museum in their capital expenditure priorities and we have been commissioned to take the project to heritage lottery submission by this Autumn and to planning submission by March 2009.

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Hotel and Office in Aberdeen starts on site

Our competition winning commission for Hazledene Developments for a 185 room Park Inn Hotel and 13500 sqm office begins on site in July. The £43m project will be both the practice's first hotel and office. The contractors are Millers and completion is expected in 2010.

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Construction drawings begun on house at Strathtummel.

Planning permission was achieved for this project in June 2007 and we are delighted that the client has given us the go-ahead for the construction drawings as well as asking us to expand the house to include an extra bedroom and a lap pool!

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Jesus College... the Movie

In addition to the drawings revealed in the last newsletter we are also able to make available a little movie of our proposals (complete with sound effects!), This can be downloaded by following the link www.richardmurphyarchitects.com/files/JesusCollegeMovie/

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New commissions

Fife NHS Trust has commissioned the practice to design the second phase of our Senile Demential and Mental Health Facility of Stratheden near Cupar, Fife. The first phase starts on site this month.

Napier University have commissioned the practice to look at a feasibility study for the conversion of Morningside Church into a recital room, rehearsal facility and recording suite.

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New Competitions

The practice has been included with five others for a major £22M undergraduate housing project at Warwick University due for submission in late July. Images will be posted after the competition result has been announced. The practice has also been short listed for a major Architectural Framework Agreement in Limerick, Republic of Ireland.

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Lectures

Richard has given lectures on the work of the practice to the Sri Lanka Architects' society and more recently to the Cambridge Construction Forum.

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Recent Press

The Glasgow Herald ran a special edition of their Magazine in late March this year featuring all the Maggie’s Cancer Care Centres built in the UK – of our centre the article says – “Murphy created the feeling of a building within a building with internal space that flows”.

A new housing development at New Hall, Harlow, where we were commissioned by the Moen Brothers to create four new contemporary and contextual house types was featured in both the BD magazine (“Housing Building Study – Right Angles” ) and The Guardian ‘Weekend’ magazine (“Snooping Around - Homes in Upcoming Areas”) in April. The BD magazine describes the development as “a remarkable achievement” and says that “In Richard Murphy Architects’ four new house types, the developer (Jon and William Moen) has commissioned residential design where every window detail, stair niche and garden points up the lack of ambition elsewhere in the sector”.

The Colombo ‘Daily Mirror’ reported in May 2008 that our new British High Commission Building in Colombo, Sri Lanka, was officially opened by HRH The Duke of Gloucester.

The Conan Doyle Medical Centre at Liberton in Edinburgh was the subject of a detailed feature by the Architect’s Journal at the end of June. The building is described as a one which “stands up as an example of well-considered healthcare design” and “… shows what communities could get in a medical centre… they can be light, airy and even offer outdoor space”.

Planning approval for the new development on the Haymarket site in Edinburgh and in particular our 5 Star hotel design received lots of attention in the local press. The BBC News quoted Tom Buchanan, Edinburgh City Council’s economic development convenor as saying – “The Haymarket development is a significant regeneration project for Edinburgh. This development will breath new life into an area that is in much need of redevelopment and will enable it to play a major role in the future economic and social life of the city”.

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And finally... House for Richard Murphy submitted for planning permission.

An exciting and innovative house for Richard Murphy himself has been submitted for planning permission to Edinburgh City Council. The house is a carefully considered response to the historical anomaly of the junction of Hart Street and Forth Street but it also is designed to be a serious contribution to low energy design with a south facing glass roof, a variety of movable insulated internal shutters, photovoltaic cells powering an air circulation system passing warm air through a heat conserving rock store. We are delighted that many architects and others have written to the Council in support of the project.

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