Plymouth Theatre Royal Production Centre has received the prestigious RFAC Trust Building of the Year Award 2003. The shortlisted projects included The Centre for Mathematical Studies, Cambridge University by Edward Cullinan Architects; Manchester Art Gallery by Michael Hopkins and Partners; Laban Centre for Dance by Herzog & de Meuron. Several programmes covering the projects, judging and awards will be shown on SKY/Artsworld during the next year.

Ian Ritchie Architects have now occupied the new stainless steel and glass extension. It was designed in-house, and the construction managed by MACE. The project is now featured on our web site.

As part of the Theatre Royal Plymouth’s 21^st birthday celebrations, TR2, the new Production and Education Centre at Cattedown, Plymouth, is opening its doors to the public for a special preview on the May 5^th Bank Holiday Monday, prior to its official grand opening by Their Royal Highnesses Earl and Countess of Wessex, on Tuesday 6^th May.

Ian Ritchie will be giving the 2^nd Bossom Lecture 2003 at the RSA London on 17 June at 6.30pm. His lecture is titled: “Design in need of a Compass”.

The new West London Line station at Shepherd’s Bush is an important transport element in the regeneration of this part of west London and is being funded by Chelsfield plc as part of the whitecity development. The Strategic Rail Authority has agreed to prioritise the project with a completion target of December 2004.

A 1/250th scale model of the Potters Fields project for Berkeley Homes will be exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2003. In addition, concept etchings by Ian Ritchie of Plymouth TR2, Whitecity, Potters Fields and a relief print of The Spire of Dublin will also be shown. The exhibition opens to the public from 2nd June to 10th August.
www.royalacademy.org.uk

Ian Ritchie has been invited to speak at the Alpbach Forum, founded by Karl Popper in 1945, in the session entitled Sustainable Architecture: "Tomorrow’s Solution or Yesterday’s Dream". The Architectural Forum runs from Thursday 4pm to Saturday evening 16th August, with the Sustainable Architecture session from 2pm Saturday. This is the third year that architecture has been a fixture at this European Forum, and this year the Alpbach Forum will be opened by Kofi Annan, UN General Secretary, Sir Christopher Zeeman, mathematician, Univ. of Warwick, and Erhard Busek, President, Austrian College.

TR2 has received a 2003 RIBA Award. In February, it received an American Institute of Architects Award.

Ian Ritchie Architects are one of six teams short listed to prepare designs for the Leamouth Bridge competition.

The invitation to architects to compete for one of the joint CABE/DAPA Social Housing projects (in and around the two capital cities) has been announced. The competition brief is available at www.unite-initiative.com.

The CABE side of the project is being managed by the Kent Architecture Centre. Ian Ritchie, CABE Emeritus Commissioner, will be chairing the selection panel.