Tower 42
Information
Location	London, United Kingdom
Status	Complete
Constructed	1971-1979
Use	Commercial
Height
Roof	183 meters
Floor count	42
Companies
Architect	Richard Seifert

Tower 42 from directly below

Tower 42 viewed from street level.

Tower 42 is the tallest skyscraper in the City of London and the fifth tallest in London as a whole. It was originally built for the National Westminster Bank, hence its former name, the NatWest Tower. Seen from above,^[1] the tower closely resembles the NatWest logo (three chevrons in a hexagonal arrangement). The tower, designed by Richard Seifert, is located at 25 Old Broad Street. It was built between 1971 and 1979, and opened in 1980, costing a total of £72 million. Download high resolution version (479x800, 132 KB)Tower 42, London - formerly the NatWest Tower. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... For the song by the Smashing Pumpkins, see 1979 (song). ... Richard Seifert was a British architect, best known for designing the NatWest Tower, the tallest building in the City of London. ... Tower 42 Closeup, Photo by User:Salimfadhley. ... Tower 42 Closeup, Photo by User:Salimfadhley. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (697x1501, 193 KB) Tower 42, the tallest building in the City of London, viewed from street level. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (697x1501, 193 KB) Tower 42, the tallest building in the City of London, viewed from street level. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The City of London is a geographically-small city within Greater London, England. ... Old NatWest logo NatWest (formerly the National Westminster Bank) is the United Kingdoms third biggest bank. ... NatWest logo taken by C Ford march 04. ... Richard Seifert was a British architect, best known for designing the NatWest Tower, the tallest building in the City of London. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday. ... For the song by the Smashing Pumpkins, see 1979 (song). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

It is 600 ft (183 m) high, which made it the tallest building in the UK until the topping-out of One Canada Square in the Docklands in 1990. One Canada Square, a skyscraper in London, England is the tallest habitable building in the United Kingdom, at 235 metres (771 ft) and 50 stories (reduced from original plans for 60). ... The Millennium Dome and Canary Wharf from the Royal Victoria Dock. ... MCMXC redirects here; for the Enigma album, see MCMXC a. ...

Its status as the first skyscraper in the City was a coup for the NatWest, but was extremely controversial at the time, as it was a major departure from the previous restrictions on tall buildings in London. The building is constructed around a huge concrete core from which the floors are cantilevered, giving it great strength but significantly limiting the amount of office space available. On opening, this was not a consideration — but following the Big Bang in the City, the nature of bank trading changed and the tower's design became somewhat obsolescent given its lack of large trading floors. The cantilever is constructed to take advantage of the air rights granted to it and the neighbouring site whilst respecting the banking hall on that adjacent site, as only one building was allowed to be developed. For a time it was the tallest cantilever in the world. The cantilevered beam (green) projects from its supports (blue), balanced by the structure (red block), which supports the load (red arrow). ... The phrase big bang, used in reference to the sudden deregulation of financial markets, was coined to describe the Thatcher governments 1986 abolition of the distinction between stockjobbers and stockbrokers on the London Stock Exchange. ...

On April 24, 1993, the Provisional IRA exploded a large truck bomb in the Bishopsgate area of the City of London. The bomb extensively damaged the then NatWest Tower and many other buildings in the vicinity, causing over £1 billion worth of damage. The tower suffered severe damage and had to be entirely reclad and internally refurbished (demolition would have been too difficult and expensive). After refurbishment, NatWest decided not to re-occupy and renamed the building the International Financial Centre, then sold it. The new owners, small UK property company Greycoat, renamed it Tower 42, in reference to its 42 floors. It is now a general-purpose office building occupied by a variety of companies. April 24 is the 114th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (115th in leap years). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) is a paramilitary group which aimed, through the use of violence, to achieve three goals: (i) British withdrawal from Ireland, (ii) the political unification of Ireland through the merger of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland , and (iii) the creation of an all... Looking north from a pedestrian bridge across Bishopsgate Bishopsgate, in the heart of Londons financial district. ...

The tower features a seafood and champagne bar on the 42nd floor called Vertigo 42. Its height affords patrons an excellent view westwards across central London and beyond.

General information

• Tower 42 was the tallest building in London and the United Kingdom for 10 years. At its completion in 1980, it claimed this title from the BT Tower (175 m / 574 ft), a transmission tower located at 60 Cleveland Street in Fitzrovia, London.

• One Canada Square surpassed Tower 42 in 1990, ending its ten-year reign as Britain's tallest building.

• Tower 42 contains two restaurants: Rhodes Twenty Four, which is situated on the 24th floor and operated by renowned chef Gary Rhodes; and Vertigo 42, a champagne and seafood bar located on the 42nd floor.

• The tower is shown in the sequences leading up to the destruction of the earth in the television series of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy leading to unfounded speculation that the name links to The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything

• The fourth epic Top Gear race ended at Vertigo 42, with Jeremy Clarkson at least appearing to just beat Richard Hammond and James May. Clarkson took a Bugatti Veyron and May a private Cessna 182 from Alba, near Turin.

This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... BT Tower from the Euston Road, looking south. ... One Canada Square, a skyscraper in London, England is the tallest habitable building in the United Kingdom, at 235 metres (771 ft) and 50 stories (reduced from original plans for 60). ... Gary Rhodes on his 1998 book, Sweet Dreams. ... The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy was first and foremost a 1978 radio comedy series written by Douglas Adams. ... The Answer to The Ultimate Question Of Life, the Universe, and Everything is a fictional solution in Douglas Adamss science fiction series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. ... The current format of Top Gear is a BAFTA and Emmy Award winning BBC television series about motor vehicles, mainly cars. ... Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born April 11, 1960) is an English broadcaster and writer who specialises in motoring. ... Richard Mark Hammond (born December 19, 1969 in Birmingham), nicknamed Hamster, is an English television presenter best known for co-presenting the television programme Top Gear along with James May and Jeremy Clarkson from 2002 onwards, and co-hosting the live annual motoring show, MPH, in Earls Court and Birmingham... James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963 in Bristol, England) is a television presenter and journalist. ... The Bugatti Veyron 16. ... The Cessna 182, marketed under the name Skylane, is a four-seat, high performance, single-engine, light airplane. ... Alba is the ancient and modern Gaelic name (IPA: ) for the country of Scotland (also Alba in Irish, and in Old Gaelic Albu). ... Torino redirects here. ...

See also

• Tall buildings in London
• 30 St Mary Axe — Tower 42's nearest tall neighbour
• One Canada Square (Canary Wharf) — the tallest building in London
• List of tallest structures in London
• List of tallest buildings and structures in Great Britain

30 St. ... Looking south down Bishopsgate, one of the main roads leading through Londons financial district. ... One Canada Square, a skyscraper in London, England is the tallest habitable building in the United Kingdom, at 235 metres (771 ft) and 50 stories (reduced from original plans for 60). ... Londons three tallest buildings at Canary Wharf, The HSBC building 200 m, One Canada Square 235 m, The City Group Centre 200 m. ... A list of the tallest structures in Great Britain. ...

References

1. ^ maps.google.com

External links

• The Tower 42 web site
• Vertigo42 - seafood and champagne bar on the 42nd floor
• Skyscrapernews.com file on Tower 42
• SkyscraperCity.com — a forum for skyscraper enthusiasts
• Rhodes Twenty Four
• Google Maps: satelite image

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Tower 42

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UK Skyscrapers

Completed: One Canada Square · HSBC Tower · Citigroup Centre · 30 St Mary Axe · Tower 42 · One Churchill Place · Beetham Tower Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Wikimedia Commons logo by Reid Beels The Wikimedia Commons (also called Commons or Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... One Canada Square, a skyscraper in London, England is the tallest habitable building in the United Kingdom, at 235 metres (771 ft) and 50 stories (reduced from original plans for 60). ... HSBC Tower (building to right is occupied by Credit Suisse First Boston and Bank of America) 8 Canada Square (also known as HSBC Group Head Office, or HSBC Tower) is a skyscraper located in the Canary Wharf development in the London Docklands. ... Citigroup Centre The Citigroup Centre is a skyscraper located in the Canary Wharf development in the London Docklands. ... Looking south down Bishopsgate, one of the main roads leading through Londons financial district. ... One Churchill Place One Churchill Place is the new headquarters of Barclays Bank. ... Beetham Tower, Manchester, 28 April 2006. ...

Expected: Shard London Bridge · Bishopsgate Tower · Heron Tower · 122 Leadenhall Street · V Building · Inacity Tower Shard London Bridge — also known as London Bridge Tower and the Shard of Glass — is an as yet unbuilt skyscraper approved for construction in London. ... Artists rendering of the Bishopsgate Tower, and some of the other towers planned for London Another rendering, showing the view from London Bridge. ... The future skyline of London, the Heron Tower can be seen as the tall structure with the spire furthest to the left Heron Tower, also known as 110 Bishopsgate, is a skyscraper planned for the centre of Londons main financial district, the City of London. ... 122 Leadenhall Street 122 Leadenhall Street is an office block in the City of London that is owned by British Land and occupied (2006) by Calyon. ... The V Building (formerly known as Arena Central Tower and briefly as Arena Square Tower) is a 51 storey residential skyscraper proposed to be built on Broad Street in the city centre of Birmingham, United Kingdom as part of a larger development called Arena Central. ... The Inacity Tower (also known as Eastgate) is a planned development for the city of Manchester in England. ...

Coordinates: 51°30′55″N, 0°05′02″W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...