Foster + Partners Wins Competition to Design Queen Elizabeth II Memorial

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27 June 2025

Foster + Partners’ plans for a unity bridge to commemorate the life of Queen Elizabeth II will go ahead.

The architecture practice was shortlisted alongside four other teams, including Heatherwick Studio and WilkinsonEyre, in a national competition to design a permanent memorial to the UK’s longest-serving monarch.

Foster + Partners’ memorial masterplan, designed in collaboration with Yinka Shonibare and Michel Desvigne Paysagiste includes a “unity bridge” and a natural stone path made from materials from the UK and wider Commonwealth.

Audio installations featuring the Queen’s voice are a central part of the concept, including an “ever-evolving digital conservatory”, accessible from the site, or anywhere in the world.

There are also figurative sculptures and a new Prince Philip Gate, plus gardens to create spaces for reflection. 

The Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee’s selection panel praised the design’s  “formal and informal elements, impressive and capable of creating an engaging landmark to endure for generations to come.”

Founder and Executive Chair of Foster + Partners, Norman Foster, said: “It is an honour and a privilege for our team to be awarded this project. Her Majesty loved history and tradition, so this is reflected in the inspiration of the original design of St James’s Park by Sir John Nash. Some of his principles have survived, whilst others have been lost and will be restored, creating a family of gardens joined by gently meandering paths.

“I knew The Queen on formal occasions but also enjoyed her informality when attending events as a member of the Order of Merit. We have sought to reflect these qualities of the formal and informal in our design, with an appeal across a wide range of ages and interests. To these ends, we have discreetly stretched the boundaries of art and technology with a deliberately gentle intervention. Our design will have the minimum impact on the nature and biodiversity of the Park and it will be phased to ensure that the precious route across it will never be closed.

“At the heart of our masterplan is a translucent bridge symbolic of Her Majesty as a unifying force, bringing together nations, countries, the Commonwealth, charities and the armed forces.”

Picture: a CGI showing "the unity bridge". Image Credit: Foster + Partners with Yinka Shonibare and Michel Desvigne Paysagiste

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 27 June 2025

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