http://www.skyscrapernews.com/news.php?ref=666

Open House 2006

September is approaching and if you love visiting normally private buildings and sampling some of the best in British architecture - it's coming up to time for the annual Open House.

For those of you who don't know, Open House is the opening up to the British public of buildings normally closed to it who can wander around for free.

This year promises to again open up the iconic skyscraper 30 St Mary's Axe, or the Gherkin if you like silly names, to people on the 16th and 17th of September. This was a building that was noticeably missing from the programme last year and one that proved so popular in 2004 that the queues were up to 8 hours long. Reputedly over 2000 people queued to get in, so if you want to visit this time around you'd best get there early.

Another notable building that will be open is Portcullis House, the large office block for MPs that stands opposite Parliament and is joined to the Palace of Westminster by an underground tunnel.

We also understand that the old favourite, Lloyds of London will be open again too but as with the Gherkin you�ll have to expect long, long queues.

To enhance this visiting experience this year a programme called "Meet the Makers" will happen where some of the architects, engineers and building managers will give guided tours of the buildings and explain their workings as machines for people, something London Houses founding director, Victoria Thornton has described as "experiencing a building in the flesh - inside and out, can help you understand it, assess it, in a way you never could from a picture."

We'll bring you more details on the full London House programme when it's announced in the middle of August.



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Sounds sad, but I'm timing my holidays to make sure I get back for this! :runaway:

This time I'm definitely going to try to go up the Gherkin :banana:

Me and my parents were gonna queue, but we walked about a mile and couldnt even see the end of the queue, so we went to LCH instead. I dont think ill do the Gherkin, but Lloyds sounds good :yes:

Is this just London?

Bump.

The full programme of events is now available.

As has been mentioned elsewhere, tickets for the Gherkin have sold out completely. :(

I managed to get up 30 st mary axe a few weeks ago, and it really is worth the queues.

Ill do Portcullis House and Severndroog Castle.And maybe Lloyds and Limehouse Accumulator Tower.

I'm keen to go the wooden eco houses just off Bermondsey Street, I shall have to delay my departure back to Leeds that weekend and have a nose around!

I'll probably be there on 17th Sept with Dan1987, last year I went to vitro, but not sure what I'll go to this year yet.

Is this just London?

In reply to this, it's not normally just London.

Many other Cities also do an Open House weekend *sometime* in September.

[At least, I know that Bristol have definately done one the last couple of years either the weekend before or the weekend after the London one]

If the gherkin is full to the rafters, my tip is the Daily Express building, fleet st. Fantastic art-deco interior, well worth a look...

I really recommend visitng a few architectural practices-
They not only have models & displays on recent projects but sometimes what there working on now. You can also ask staff about projects there working on

Fosters would be good to try & get some info on northgate
Rogers for RS, 122LH & Tate towers
Allies & Morrison - might have modelS etc of Waterloo 3 sisters, stratford tower & 80 bishopsgate.
Squire & partners- Old st tower numerous resi towers

The last one I went to was a couple of years back at Rogers & there was a few models of earlier incarnations of RS that hadn't been released before.

http://www.londonopenhouse.org/london/map/index-search.asp?period=&day=Sat&day=Sun&borough=&name=&Search=Search&advanced=on&building=Architectural+Practice&architect=&resident=1

Ill do Portcullis House and Severndroog Castle.And maybe Lloyds and Limehouse Accumulator Tower.
The view from Sevendroog is really good. Take some pictures and post them.

I managed to get up 30 st mary axe a few weeks ago, and it really is worth the queues.

How did you manage that? Is it open to the public at other times of the year?

I tried to pre-book on the 21st but it wasn't available yet when I went to bed here in the US (early AM in the UK), and by the time I woke up, it was fully booked. Very disappointing.

I'd love to hear more recommendations. The guide book has been delivered to my parents' address in the UK so I don't have it to look at yet. I'm moving back to the UK after five US in the US, and Open House on my first weekend back is my welcome home present. ;)

City Hall should be good for views of Willis.

Bump.

The full programme of events is now available.

As has been mentioned elsewhere, tickets for the Gherkin have sold out completely. :(

:bash:

Bah!!! That's not fair man!!! :gaah:

yeah im really fucked off about that, when i visited the site to write about a couple of weeks ago there was nothing about maknig people pre-book as a requirement, i see thats since been added.

Not worth starting a new thread for an this is as good a place as any to post.

Mirjam Von Arx's film Building the Gherkin is available to buy. There is also a few pics and a clip on the website.

http://www.buildingthegherkin.com/

Good link to open house in southwark (includes Allies & Morisson if anyone wants to dig for some news on there recent towers ;) )

http://www.london-se1.co.uk/whatson/seriesmap/40

Right then, what are everyone's plans?

I'm gonna check out the view from the top of City Hall. Might go and see Portcullis House as well.

Are there any "high points" in the City which are going to be open? (apart from the fully-booked Gherkin of course...)

I might try and get inside the o2. There was a trip to the top of a tower block in Stratford to look over the Olympic site, but I think it was ticketed only.

I'll probably venture into the city, and I want to try and get to Allies & Morrison to get pics and gossip about 100 Bishopsgate.

Are there any "high points" in the City which are going to be open? (apart from the fully-booked Gherkin of course...)

Lloyds man!!

Tomorrow - Portcullis The Hop Exchange and More London and City Hall.
Sunday - Severndrog Castle.

Sadly I haven't got much spare time this weekend but hoping to visit Broadgate, the eco houses on Bermondsey Street and do the Rotherhithe tube tunnel tour.

The 'Touch London' and 'Pipers' map of London was worth seeing last weekend, although they retain Minerva in the model. The slightly eccentric old bloke doing the talks (think he was a model maker) seems certain Minerva would go ahead, but I think the info shared on this forum re: the redesign to a lowrise is more up to date than his.

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............ha, I saw that swiftly removed comment wjfox!

get yourself a bird for those kind of shenanigans!

LMAO :lol: :D

Well, I think the Kleenex joke is getting a bit old now. :)

double post

For some of you who think we wait ages fro skyscrapers to go up in London- The building here is a Fosters design from the late 90's that still hasn't been built even though the current building is a redundant 60's buolding that has been empty for years (Think it was the old Lazards HQ). I quite like it, it harks back to Fosters HSBC HK.

http://i10.tinypic.com/4gt6694.jpg

The best model of London I've ever seen.