2-887-735 - Historic England Archive/Heritage Images

WD and HO Wills, Whitchurch Lane, City of Bristol, 15/06/1979. The podium building, bridging the artificial lake, and the office block above it at the Wills tobacco factory at Hartcliffe, Bristol. Both the office building and the factory itself were constructed from Cor-Ten steel frames, Cor-Ten steel was pre-weathered to produce a russet brown patina which would in theory harmonise with the landscaping. The use of Cor-Ten steel for the bold exposed frame of the office building is given as one of the principal justifications awarding it Grade II listed status in May 2000. The building was converted into flats in around 2007 whilst the factory itself had been demolished in 1999. The podium building that the office block sits above housed various amenities for the factory employees, shops, restaurants and even a cinema. This was in response to a survey that Wills undertook and to compensate for the out of town location of the new factory compared to the Southville and Bedminster sites that it replaced.