My favourite London building: Battersea Power Station

If you were to ask me what my favourite building is in London I wouldn’t hesitate to tell you that it is the Battersea Power Station. You might look at me a bit funny having expected to hear a more sexy answer like the Shard or the Lloyds building, but to me the Battersea Power Station has a haunting industrial beauty with an interesting history which I really love.

Designed by one of Britain’s best 20th century architects the coal-fired Battersea Power Station, made up of two individual power stations constructed to form of a single building, is one of London’s most loved and recognisable landmarks built over 70 years ago. Dubbed  ‘One of the finest sights in London’ by the Observer newspaper it represents a time of grand vision and vigorous industry for our capital.

I am a huge fan of the “the brick cathedral style” in which the station was constructed featuring a symmetrical design with towers built from fantastic red brick. Amazingly it is one of the largest brick buildings in the world and is noted for its original, lavish Art Deco interior fittings and décor. It is a true original and true originals never age.

Although Battersea Power Station ceased working in 1983, over the last 50 years it has become a well known and loved landmark in London and has been allocated a prestigious Grade II listing. The station has stared in popular culture references a number of times including cover art of the 1977 ‘Animals’ album from Pink Floyd, the Beatles’ 1965 film, ‘Help!’ and has appeared numerous times in ‘Doctor Who’.

Since its closure in the 80s the building has remained mainly untouched which has lead to the structure unfortunately falling into disrepair and has been added to English Heritage’s Heritage at Risk Register. The site was also listed on the 2004 World Monuments Watch by the World Monuments Fund.

Luckily Battersea Power Station has been rescued and it is at the heart of a £8 billion redevelopment of the Nine Elms area which combines 20 separate projects covering 560 acres and sees foundations for a new community being laid down including homes, workspaces, shops, restaurants, cafés and cultural venues combine with 18 acres of new public space, all of which sounds so exciting! Learn more about the development of Battersea Power Station here.

I think that this beautiful and majestic building certainly deserves a second chance! Battersea Power Station is certainly my favourite building in London and I am so glad that it will see a regeneration and revitalisation along with this forgotten corner of central London so that I can look up and see this iconic structure for years to come.