Lloyds building from the atrium of the Cheesegrater - both Richard Rogers buildings.
Richard Rogers, who died on 18 December 2021, arguably gave more to the London skyline than any other modern architect. From the O2 dome to Heathrow's Terminal 5, to the oddly shaped Cheesegrater, his firms designed some of the most iconic buildings in the capital.
Here, we round up some of his more notable work around London. But not all — the list is very long. The years given are when each project was completed. How many did you know about?
Super-famous buildings
The Millennium Dome, now known as the O2 (1999). The great tent was widely derided in its early years but has since grown in popularity. It has featured in a Bond film and served as an Olympic venue. The Lloyds Building (1986) in the City, seen from above. Its inside-out structure was revolutionary when it was built... so much so that your author had a poster it on his wall as a teenager (I was a very strange teenager). It was the youngest building ever to receive Grade I listed status in 2011, when it was just 25 years old. Channel 4 headquarters on Horseferry Road, 1994.122 Leadenhall, dubbed the Cheesegrater. This wedge-shaped skyscraper stands directly opposite the Lloyds Building. Its brightly coloured ventilation pipes and external lift shafts are Rogers leitmotifs. The colour even seeps onto the building's roof, where a falcon nestbox is also painted a primary red. The building is the headquarters for Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners — Richard Rogers's architectural firm.Heathrow Terminal 5 (2008) is supposedly the largest free-standing structure in the UK. Rogers' firm also designed the distinctive air traffic control tower at Heathrow. It's twice the height of Nelson's Column.
Other Rogers buildings you may have seen
We all remember the controversy over this one. The NEO Bankside development (2012) has repeatedly hit the headlines after its occupants made a complaint about their neighbours — namely the observation gallery of Tate Modern's extension. It's very easy to see into some of the multi-million pound apartments. The legal battle rumbles on.A very similar development to NEO Bankside, the Riverlight residential development is one of the more distinctive projects in Nine Elms.Yet another residential project — one of the most exclusive in the world — is the One Hyde Park development in Knightsbridge (2010). The penthouse was marketed for £136 million.Lloyds Register (1999) is Rogers's other Lloyds building, on nearby Fenchurch Street. It's often possible to visit on Open House weekend.88 Wood Street (1999) was completed the same year and shares many similarities with the Lloyds Register building.LSE Centre Building (2019) is a spacious student building on the LSE campus. You might easily dismiss it from the outside, but the roomy, colourful interior is another good one to visit on Open House weekend.You may have been inside the British Museum's World Conservation and Exhibitions Centre (2014) without realising it. This is the venue for most of the museum's modern blockbuster exhibitions, but the entrance is located within an older part of the museum.Paddington Waterside (2004), arguably one of the less glamorous projects here, nevertheless has some cute details, like these trademark coloured ventilation pipes along the basin.The tidal pumping station (1988) in the Royal Docks is easily missed, but isn't far from the cable car station. Its bright colours carry on a long London tradition of glorious pumping stations, dating back to Crossness and Abbey Mills.Maggie's Centre at Charing Cross Hospital (2008) was the first purpose-built Maggie's Centre. It won numerous architectural prizes, including the Sterling Prize. Image by David Hawgood under creative commons licence.Mossbourne Community Academy in Hackney (2004). Image by Tarquin Binary under creative commons licence.
