201 Bishopsgate

201 Bishopsgate is the latest addition to the massive Broadgate development, launched in the 1980s and, with the completion of this element, providing 450,000sq.m of office space, plus shops, restaurants and outstanding public spaces. The development, at the north-eastern tip of the City of London, consists of two buildings, a tower of 35 storeys and a lower block of 13 storeys, connected by a glazed galleria. In technical terms, the greatest challenge was rafting over the railway tracks out of Liverpool Street station. The signal box that controls train movements also had to be retained and incorporated within the site.

When DP9 became involved in the project there were existing planning consents for 'groundscraper' blocks. British Land asked SOM to rethink the scheme, with the result that a tall building, providing space in tune with the needs of the market, was substituted. The shape of the tower reflects the imperative to avoid two strategic view corridors, the protection of which was a prime concern of the City. The scheme, the largest speculative development ever undertaken in the City, is shortly scheduled for completion. The most significant feature of this project is probably its extension of the Broadgate concept into the fringe of the East End, opening up the potential for further development on land to the north.