One of the City's more striking and elegant towers
Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners for British Land
Contract value: £340m
GIA: 84,424m²
Cost per m²: £4,027
This new 50-storey skyscraper in the City of London is already famous for its slanted ‘cheesegrater’ form which responds to British Land’s desire to be able to offer its own diverse clients office spaces of different floor areas (diminishing as the building rises) and the demand from planners to preserve key historic views of St Paul’s Cathedral, particularly from Fleet Street.
It is one of the more striking and elegant towers to have been added to the City’s jumbled skyline in recent years. Instead of a central core, the building has a full perimeter braced tube, which is visible as a giant bold steel exoskeleton on three sides, giving a visceral sense of the building’s balancing act. The front facade glazes this over in a huge straight slick shimmering sweep from floor to sky, creating a dramatic contrast.
See other winners in the RIBA regional awards - London: Commercial