Malmaison Hotel, Reading

Building in Berkshire, UK

51°27′26.64″N 0°58′18.35″W / 51.4574000°N 0.9717639°W / 51.4574000; -0.9717639Opening1844^[1]Other informationNumber of rooms75Number of suites6Number of restaurants1

The Malmaison Hotel Reading (formerly the Great Western Hotel) is a grade II listed hotel in the town of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. It is situated at the junction of Blagrave Street and Station Road, directly opposite the main entrance to Reading railway station. It was opened in 1844, shortly after the Great Western Railway opened its line from London, and is thought to be the oldest surviving purpose-built railway hotel in the world.^[1]^[2]^[3]

History

When the Great Western Main Line from London to Bristol was completed in 1841 a hotel was needed for people visiting the town. According to English Heritage, the building is likely to have been designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, who was GWR's Chief Engineer at the time of its construction and who incorporated similar features in the Royal Station Hotel at Slough (which was demolished in 1938).^[2]^[3]

The building was completed in 1844 and was used as a hotel until a fire in the 1960s. Subsequently, the building was used as offices until it was renovated by the Malmaison hotel chain and reopened, in 2007, as the Malmaison Hotel.^[1]^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Phillips, Daphne (1980). The Story of Reading. Countryside Books. p. 115. ISBN 0-905392-07-8.
^ ^a ^b Historic England. "Great Western House (1113591)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
^ ^a ^b "Building the Great Western Railway". Reading History Trail. Archived from the original on 16 October 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
^ "Reading". Malmaison. Retrieved 24 February 2017.

External links

The Malmaison Hotel, Reading on the Maimaison website

Listed buildings in Reading

Grade I

Abbey Gateway
Chazey Court Barn
Greyfriars Church
Reading Abbey
Reading Minster
St Laurence's Church

Grade II*

Grade II

v t e Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Railways	Great Western Bristol and Exeter Bristol and Gloucester Bristol and South Wales Union Cheltenham and Great Western Union Cornwall Dartmouth and Torbay East Somerset Great Western and Brentford Llynvi Valley Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton South Devon South Devon and Tavistock South Wales South Wales Mineral Taff Vale Vale of Neath West Cornwall West Somerset Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth
Railway stations	Bath Spa Bradford-on-Avon Bridgend Bridgwater Bristol Temple Meads Charfield Charlbury Chippenham Cirencester Town Crediton Culham Exeter St Davids Exeter St Thomas Liskeard Mortimer Paddington The Railway Station Hilton Hotel, Paddington St Germans Salisbury Stroud Weston Junction Yatton
Bridges and viaducts	Angarrack viaduct Avon Bridge Bath:St James's Bridge; Skew Bridge; St James' Viaduct Bishop's Bridge Chepstow Bridge Chippenham viaduct Clifton Suspension Bridge Cornwall Railway viaducts Carnon St Pinnock Cumberland Basin swing bridges "Devil's Bridge", Uphill Gatehampton Railway Bridge Hungerford Bridge Landore Viaduct Loughor Viaduct Maidenhead Bridge Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway Moulsford Railway Bridge Royal Albert Bridge Somerset Bridge Three Bridges, London Usk Bridge Wharncliffe Viaduct Windsor Bridge
Tunnels and earthworks	Box Tunnel Cockett Tunnel Great Western Main Line Llansamlet arches Sapperton Tunnel Sonning Cutting South Devon Banks South Devon Railway sea wall Thames Tunnel Wellington Bank, Somerset
Ships, harbours and waterways	Great Western Steamship Company SS Great Western SS Great Britain Balanced rudder SS Great Eastern Isambard Kingdom Brunel Standing Before the Launching Chains of the Great Eastern (1857 photograph) SS Archimedes borrowed by Brunel, used for propeller tests Brentford Dock Bristol Harbour Cumberland Basin Underfall Yard Millbay Docks Westport Canal
Other engineering and building	Atmospheric railway Balloon flange girder Baulk road Broad gauge Brook House, Steventon Crew's Hole tar works Crystal Palace water towers Great Exhibition (Brunel on committee) Malmaison Hotel, Reading Renkioi Hospital Fellow of the Royal Society Institution of Civil Engineers (VP from 1850) Abraham-Louis Breguet (trained Brunel) Robert Pearson Brereton (Chief assistant)
Personal	Marc Isambard Brunel (father) Sophia Kingdom (mother) Lindsey House (childhood home) University of Caen Normandy Lycée Henri-IV Henry Marc Brunel (second son) Scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream (picture commissioned by Brunel) Brunel Manor (commissioned by Brunel for his retirement) Sarah Guppy, whose portrait was painted by Brunel Kensal Green Cemetery
Legacy and commemoration	Statues of Brunel Victoria Embankment Paddington Station Bristol Temple Meads Station Brunel Museum Being Brunel Broad gauge running line Blue plaque, 98 Cheyne Walk List of Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmarks (SS Great Britain #97) Brunel University London NR Brunel (Network Rail typeface) Brunel Award 100 Greatest Britons (Brunel #2) Two Brunel £2 coins in 2006 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony featured Brunel Brunel (opera project)
• Other works of Brunel