please empty your brain below
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I think this is the second time dg has visited my workplace on Open House weekend. (I changed jobs rather than him repeating). Glad to hear you didn't attempt the canteen.
martin | 19.09.16 - 7:22 a.m. | #
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On Saturday I went to the London Museum of Water and Steam, at Kew. One of the features is a model of the Square Mile giving an idea of the pipes and mains that are hidden under the surface. It was timely to have seen the scale of some of the bores that run under our feet, for giving a hint of what is meant, in terms of proportions, by words like 'supersewer.'
RogerW | 19.09.16 - 7:34 a.m. | #
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To be correct,the London steam museums address is Brentford, Kew is on the other side of the river. I think the name of Kew Bridge Station, which is nearby makes people think they are in Kew.
Has anything been done around the Twelve Trees gasholders, do they ever get a fresh coat of paint? As listed buildings they should be looked after.
Pity that the large new lock gets little use.
John | 19.09.16 - 7:59 a.m. | #
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I suspect you've been spun a bit of a yarn re the suspended building in Here East - it was the Main Media Conference Room (MMCR) and was used several times a day for the many press conferences - both by the IOC and LOCOG, as well as by various individual sport federations and occasionally key athletes themselves. LOCOG had a daily morning Q&A for example, which I attended a few times, as a Gamesmaker working in the adjacent car park.
It would make a poor refuge as it was suspended (so exposed), made of temporary lightweight materials and only had two small entrances and space for 800 people - there were up to 28000 press in the adjacent buildings. It was intended to be not part of the Legacy, interesting that it has survived. You can see some games-time inside pictures at https://daviddeguzman.com/2012/08/17/london-2012-07-25-2012-at-the-mmcr/
Ollie | Homepage | 19.09.16 - 8:06 a.m. | #
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If the Games-time backstory we were told about the central building at Here East is as untrue as you say, then my respect for the tour guides has dropped a few notches. It did seem slightly ridiculous in the event of an 'incident' to herd the press into a suspended metal box.
They did confirm it was supposed to be temporary, but was retained (by request) as it could have a useful legacy function.
diamond geezer | Homepage | 19.09.16 - 8:26 a.m. | #
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We too went on the Here East tour on Saturday although we had two women from the marketing/sales department show us round. We too were told that the theatre was only used once during the games for exactly the purpose you describe. We were surprised - as I guess most people were - by the size of the complex. It will be interesting to see how other bits of it are fitted out - the Wayne McGregor dance studios, for example.
Joan | 19.09.16 - 8:56 a.m. | #
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I also went on a Here East tour on Saturday (2pm one) with two of the architects involved in the Here East conversion (as opposed to the initial construction), and we also got told about the theatre only being used once for a press conference, and being an Olympic requirement as a refuge.
At least there were some genuinely informative bits of the rest of the talk (sounded like they knew what they were talking about when it came to Here East stuff), unlike my Sunday experience at 30 Crown Place. Apparently they normally have an architect led tour, but the architects had work commitments that meant they had to cancel, so we had some volunteers from the building and occupying law firm lead us round. Started with a charming (if a bit excessive) list of all the times the building was used for filming, but once we were up on the 16th floor client suites with skyline views in all directions, the descriptions we got of what we were looking at were ridiculous. Charming, but ridiculous.
Also did:
Foreign and Commonwealth Office - spectacular building, and handles larges crowds very well
HM Treasury - not nearly as much open to see as with the FCO, but really interesting to see the Foster & Partners conversion of the building into a modern office
One Bishops Square - modern office block built over Spitalfields Market for a law firm. Very swish, with 2 rooftop terraces with incredible views, and some really stunning atria/lightwells
Darren S | 19.09.16 - 9:35 a.m. | #
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I did think the single-use story about the Theatre seemed a bit fishy - I knew there were daily press conferences somewhere in the IBC/MPC compound, but only got to see them on screen so never quite knew where they were. (One which sticks in the mind followed complaints from journalists that they hadn't seen enough of the mascot - enter Wenlock, who went round the room hugging anyone he could get his hands on)
martin | 19.09.16 - 10:44 a.m. | #
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I shall be sure to add the Bow Back Rivers and the Prescott Channel to my itinerary next time I boat to London.
Very minor correction - It's the Canal and River (no s) Trust.
dg writes: Fixed, thanks
Sarah | Homepage | 19.09.16 - 12:32 p.m. | #
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