Royal London Hospital’s fantastical children’s play-space

Architect Cottrell & Vermeulen has worked with designer Morag Myerscough to create a huge living-room-themed activity space with oversized scaled-up furniture.

The double-height space has been given a disproportionately tall skirting board, in keeping with the oversized theme, and the room is decorated with wallpaper featuring hand-drawn animal patterns. A chair, lamp, a television, toys, globe, and rug have all been supersized.

Interaction designer and artist Chris O’Shea has worked with Nexus Interactive Arts on the television, a portal to Woodland Wiggle – a storybook-style world where children can paint, play music, control the weather, and animate the animal characters, which appear elsewhere in the space.

O’Shea consulted with physiotherapists and occupational therapists to determine which movements have the most notable health benefits and allowed these to inform the game design.

Textile designer Betty Fraser Myerscough, (mother of Morag) has designed the physical incarnations of Eddie the Tiger and Twoo the Wise Owl, which hale from Cozy Wood.

They have also been reimagined by animator Felix Massie for the game. And their adventures will be told at the foot of the storytelling chair, a place for children to gather for readings.

The globe, meanwhile, can be explored by children who can relax within, while wooden tops and puzzle cubes provide seating for them.

Cottrell and Vermeulen has also designed a new children’s Sky Garden featuring a tepee, sky forest, tree house, and a sculptural canopy where a wildlife sound installation by BBC Wildlife recordist Chris Watson plays.