A MYSTERY architectural firm was the original winner of the prestigious contest to design a studio for U2 in Dublin’s docklands.

The design, a rectangular building from which emerges an elegant tower, was the first choice of the seven-man jury that included Adam Clayton, the rock band’s bass player. The contest was jointly sponsored by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority and U2.

However the jurors were forced to abandon their initial choice because they could not identify its author.

Despite an inquiry by auditors PriceWaterhouseCoopers, an application form for the mystery design could not be found, nor was there any sign of the €100 registration fee having been paid. At one point, the organisers considered posting an image of their first choice on a website, in an effort to track down its creators. Legal advisers warned that, even if the architects did came forward, their entry could not win. The discrepancies in the application automatically rendered the entry invalid.

Sources close to the authority confirmed that an early design had been selected but was disqualified because it was invalid. They denied any suggestion that the authority was responsible for lost or missing entries. Other sources close to the selection process suggest that the volume of paperwork overwhelmed the administrators.

The revelations will embarrass the authority, which kept the much vaunted contest shrouded in secrecy to protect the anonymity of the process. Even the identity of the jurors remained confidential.

The new winner is BDA, a Dublin-based architectural firm. Its “twisting tower” was co-designed by Felim Dunne, who is coincidentally the brother-in-law of U2’s manager, Paul McGuinness.

The design includes penthouse recording studios for U2 to replace their existing studios in a warehouse on Hanover Quay. It will also house an auditorium, bar and restaurant.

Beneath the penthouse will be floors of office space, and beneath that they plan to have residential apartments. Peter Coyne, the chief executive of the authority, said the winning design “provides a unique and remarkable landmark for the city”.

There were 542 entries from architectural firms around the world. Frank Gehry, one of the world’s most renowned architects and the designer of the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao, was among those who failed to impress the jury.

The winning scheme will shortly be exhibited in Dublin along with 100 other shortlisted entries.

The contest became embroiled in controversy and was subject to anonymous sniping on website chat rooms soon after it was launched last November. During the selection process it emerged that members of the band had been seen leaving the Santa Monica studio of Frank Gehry, who had entered the competition. Other entrants complained.

The involvement of Price Waterhouse Coopers was described as a routine audit of entrants by the organisers. However, it now emerges that the auditors were investigating discrepancies in the entries.

A senior figure in the authority said there was “no administrative or other error on the part of the authority which affected the outcome of the competition”. He said: “Specifically we did not lose any application forms as suggested.”

A spokesman said that BDA won the contest “fair and square”.

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