Take me to your reader: the space-age paper kiosk

It could be a UFO or a redesigned Tardis but this is the new-look newspaper kiosk designed to spruce up the streets of the city.

The borough of Kensington and Chelsea called in designer Thomas Heatherwick to revamp newspaper stands as part of its mission to promote good design.

Heatherwick's structures are wood-lined steel on the inside and brass on the outside. It opens out in sections and the doors contain magazines, ready for immediate use. Traditional structures can take an hour to stock.

The designer said his stall, called The Paperhouse, also looked more elegant on the street than the traditional box-like stands when closed for the night.

"The kiosks are part of the landscape of London like buses and bollards.

"But the fibreglass ones are not high-quality material and they don't age well.

"They kill the street and are very tempting to graffiti artists. That's why the idea came up to make something that looked good even closed."

Daniel Moylan, deputy leader of the council, said: "This commission is key to our continuing commitment to excellent design for the public realm."

The first kiosks have been installed outside Sloane Square and Earl's Court Tube stations. Two more are planned and the cost of all four is £160,000.