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Bill Jack, 1933 – 2023
We are sad to announce that our former chairman, Bill Jack, has died, aged 89.
Bill acted as the chair of the London studio from 1986 and was elected as BDP Chair in 1989, taking over from Keith Scott who was the last of the founding partners to retire.
Bill grew up in a small town outside of Aberdeen called Inverugie. Prior to joining BDP in 1962, he studied architecture at Aberdeen College of Architecture and Cornell University before working as a young architect at Basil Spence and Partners in Edinburgh.
Bill became a partner at BDP in 1966 and helped the practice to deliver on a wide range of projects including the Channel Tunnel Terminal, the RAC Rescue Control Centre, The Royals in Southend and the HQ of Banco Espirito Santo e Comercial de Lisboa in Portugal, amongst many more. Perhaps most notably, he worked with Jeremy Dixon, Ed Jones and Martin Ward on the redevelopment of the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.
In 1984, the Royal Opera House decided to hold an international competition to carry out a major refurbishment and extension to its historic, landmark building. Bill obtained a set of the competition documents make a proposal for BDP to compete. Bill worked with his friend and ex-colleague Jeremy Dixon on the submission and together, they won the competition, overseeing a beautiful restoration of the famous building.
He enjoyed a working relationship with his wife, Janet who became BDP’s first female partner in 1986, running the landscape architecture practice until 1991. Together, they were central in bringing forward the Parliamentary Bill that enabled the Channel Tunnel to come to fruition.
Bill’s ability to spot talented designers was central to building BDP’s profile, of which he was a staunch defender. He used every opportunity to see that his talented designers got the credit they deserved for their hard work. He was open to seeing BDP broaden its horizons, seeking jobs in Europe and further afield, building on BDP’s reputation for designing high quality buildings and places.
He was always of the belief that BDP was a people-centric business and through its people, it generated commitment and strength in its designs. As he stepped into the role as chair, in 1989, he worked hard to develop BDP into the exciting and enterprising global firm it is today.
His legacy at BDP intact, Bill retired from the practice during the recession of the mid 90s, alongside his wife. They lived together in East Finchley in a home they designed together until Janet sadly died in 2016. He is survived by his daughter, Amy.
Chris Harding, Chair at BDP, said: "Everyone at BDP is very sad to hear about Bill Jack’s passing. Bill joined BDP in January 1962, poignantly for me, the same month and year I was born. He joined shortly after George Grenfell Baines founded the practice. Known then as Building Design Partnership, it was based on the radical idea of architects, engineers and quantity surveyors all working together 'under one roof'. Bill was a passionate disciple of the idea.
"I joined the London team as a young architect to work on the Channel Tunnel project in the early 90s. The project became one of the lifeboat projects for the firm tiding us through a severe depression. Although Bill wasn’t working on the Channel Tunnel at the time, I recall being dispatched as a young architect to see the practice chair about a possible job he was chasing in Lisbon. Although nothing came of it, I experienced his energy and enthusiasm for good design, the ethos of the practice, and its people. Bill’s enthusiasm gave him a special aura that everyone respected and looked up to. He was passionate about BDP’s collaborative approach and like Grenfell Baines, understood that success is delivered by high performing teams.
"He certainly had an eye for talent spotting, evidenced by the recruitment of the ‘The Bartlett Boys’ (his words), all four of the founding partners who later went on to build AHMM.
"Perhaps summed up best in Bill’s own words: “BDP was a very exciting firm to work in, with opportunities for talented young architects to take on large project responsibilities without design control from above. There were no barriers to creativity, and many saw the benefits of a freeform, multidisciplinary design.” I certainly agree with that."
He will be missed by all at BDP.
Tributes
“For my own part, Bill was massively inspirational and influential. Whenever he walked into the Gresse Street office, you knew he was in the office. He had a ‘swagger’ that permeated the building. On my first day at BDP London in 1980, he simply said to me: “I don’t know where this is going, but just follow me, son and we’ll get there.” I am delighted that I took him at his word. RIP Bill”
Peter Drummond, former BDP Chief Executive
“Bill’s is a legacy of which Janet will be proud, together with all those who knew and appreciated him and of which GGB himself would have been congratulatory.”
Roy Adams OBE, former BDP Chief Executive
“Bill’s enthusiasm and vision gained the confidence of clients and allowed him to be involved in a range of strategic projects covering public and commercial buildings.
“Bill was an enthusiastic visionary architect who inspired several project teams who worked under his leadership. He was charismatic and fun to work with and I especially enjoyed working with him to complete the West Quay shopping centre in Southampton.
“As a pupil of Bill’s, I went on to lead the architectural group in the London office and retired from the practice in 2018 owing much of my nearly 40 year career to Bill’s wisdom and inspirational leadership.”
Peter Coleman, former BDP Principal
“I recall Bill was very much one of the more noticeable partners at BDP with his version of ‘‘larger-than-life’’. He dressed sharply and looked the part. Being new to the practice and little more than an observer, he came across to me as having an ultra-positive, can-do-attitude. He always had high levels of energy and enthusiasm and was always ‘‘on the go’’- in and out of the office (usually with a heavy briefcase) going off to meetings of one sort or another. Bill was very supportive of those who worked for him, and he was always a strong advocate and supporter of the contribution made by landscape architects on projects.”
Sean Dooley, architect, BDP
“Bill was always a tower of strength, a combination of wisdom, thoughtfulness and fortitude, not unlike the character of his home town, Aberdeen, the granite city. Bill made everything possible. He skilfully managed relationships with the rest of BDP, understood from experience the complex financial arguments around the project and was a leading creative spirit within our small practice. Any problems - then go find Bill.”
Jeremy Dixon, former Principal, Dixon Jones Architects