The Twentieth Century Society C20
The Twentieth Century Society (C20) is a British charity with interests that focus on 20th-century Britain. It is concerned with the preservation of architectural heritage after 1914. This was the age where buildings were no longer protected by the Victorian Society and it was also the year that World War 1 started.
It was established in the 1979, when it was called the Thirties Society, in response to the threat to demolish Sir Edwin Cooper’s Classical building for Lloyds of London. There was a growing understanding in the 1970's of 20th Century design and the need to protect objects that at the time had no protection.
One of the the most significant cases was The Firestone Factory by Wallis Gilbert & Partners, an Art Deco building that was demolished in 1980 by its owners over a bank holiday weekend on the eve of it being listed. This loss galvanised support for the protection of C20th buildings and led directly to the listing of 150 inter-war buildings, including Battersea Power Station. A number of other campaigns followed, including Bracken House, red telephone boxes and the rescue of outdoor lidos. In 1992 the Society changed its name to the Twentieth Century Society with the first of its Journals being published two years later.
In 2019 it celebrated its 40 year anniversary and today remains an active registered UK charity governed by a Board of Trustees with open documents covering governance and risk management. It continues to campaign to save outstanding buildings and design that have shaped the British landscape after 1914, both iconic buildings, and little-known gems, considered irreplaceable and under threat.
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