Stephen Hawking spent an important period of his life at a Victorian villa at 5 West Road, Cambridge, a property owned by Gonville & Caius College.
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Hawking → spend → College
Hawking and his first wife, Jane, moved there with their children in 1975, after the stairs at their previous home became increasingly difficult for him to manage as his motor neurone disease progressed.
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disease → move → home
Caius adapted the property for wheelchair access, allowing him to continue his academic work while raising his family.
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him → adapt → family
The house also became the place where he wrote A Brief History of Time, the 1988 book that introduced complex ideas about cosmology to millions of readers.
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that → become → readers
Years later, the villa was demolished and replaced by the Stephen Hawking Building, creating a lasting physical connection between the Cambridge site and his scientific legacy.
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villa → demolish → site
Stephen Hawking moved to the West Road villa in 1975
Hawking and Jane had bought a townhouse in Cambridge in the late 1960s, but the stairs became increasingly difficult for him to manage as his condition progressed.
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condition → move → 1960s
In 1975, the family moved to 5 West Road, a house owned by Gonville & Caius College.
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family → move → College
The college adapted the Victorian property for Hawking's wheelchair, providing what Caius described as “lateral living”.
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Caius → adapt → living
Its large garden also gave their three children, Robert, Lucy and Timothy, space to play.
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garden → give → space
The house allowed Hawking to balance family life with his demanding academic career.
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Hawking → allow → career
By then, he already had a strong connection with Caius.
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he → have → Caius
He became a Fellow in 1965, a year after receiving his PhD, and remained associated with the college for more than five decades.
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He → become → decades
The house became the place where A Brief History of Time was written
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History → become → Time
The connection between the house and Hawking's most famous book comes directly from the physicist himself.
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connection → come → physicist
In a 2015 speech at Gonville & Caius marking 50 years as a Fellow, Hawking recalled the property and said that he had written A Brief History of Time there.
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he → mark → Time
Published in 1988, the book explored some of the biggest questions in modern physics, including the origins of the universe, the nature of time, black holes and the laws governing the cosmos.
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book → publish → cosmos
Hawking presented these ideas for readers without specialist knowledge, using accessible explanations to explore how scientists had developed theories about the universe and its origins.
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scientists → present → universe
The book became an international bestseller.
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book → become → ?
Gonville & Caius says it eventually sold around 20 million copies worldwide, making Hawking one of the most recognisable science writers of his generation.
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Hawking → say → generation
Caius adapted its buildings around him
The changes to Hawking's home were part of a broader effort by Gonville & Caius to ensure that he could remain involved in college life.
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he → adapt → life
The college installed a lift and adapted its historic buildings so that Hawking could attend meetings, dine in Hall and take part in college activities.
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Hawking → instal → activities
These changes enabled him to remain an active member of the academic community as his physical condition deteriorated.
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condition → enable → community
With that support, Hawking continued his research and writing while maintaining his connection with the college and its students and Fellows.
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Hawking → continue → college
A medical crisis changed how he communicated
In 1985, Hawking developed severe pneumonia while in Switzerland.
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Hawking → change → Switzerland
His condition became critical, and doctors asked Jane whether life support should be withdrawn.
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support → become → Jane
Caius arranged and funded a specially chartered flight to bring him back to Cambridge, where he was treated at Addenbrooke's Hospital.
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he → arrange → Hospital
He underwent a tracheotomy and lost his natural speaking voice as a result.
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He → undergo → result
Hawking subsequently relied on computer-assisted technology and a speech synthesiser to communicate.
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Hawking → rely → technology
Although the change fundamentally altered the way he interacted with others, he continued his research, writing and public work for decades.
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he → alter → decades
The Victorian villa was replaced
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villa → replace → ?
The house at 5 West Road eventually made way for a new college accommodation building.
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house → make → building
Gonville & Caius named the structure the Stephen Hawking Building, preserving the physicist's connection with the site.
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Gonville → name → site
The redevelopment took place while Hawking was still alive.
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Hawking → take → place
In February 2005, he cut the first sod to mark the beginning of construction.
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he → cut → construction
A foundation stone was unveiled later that year, and the building was completed in 2007.
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building → unveil → 2007
The redevelopment transformed the site from a private family residence into part of the college's accommodation facilities while retaining its connection with one of Caius's most celebrated Fellows.
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redevelopment → transform → Fellows
The Stephen Hawking Building
The building has 75 undergraduate rooms
The Stephen Hawking Building now forms part of Gonville & Caius College's accommodation.
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Building → have → accommodation
According to the college, it contains 75 undergraduate rooms, along with eight Fellows' sets and three supervision rooms.
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it → accord → sets
The project cost more than £10 million and received donations from more than 2,000 Caians, parents and friends of the college.
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project → cost → college
The building also has a distinctive S-shaped design.
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building → have → design
…and 7 more, not listed.
The Aporia
