London’s 13 favourite skyscrapers ranked
A report out two weeks ago documented over 236 skyscrapers coming to the city – over double what it’s got now.
London's long been thought of as a low-rise city – compare it with New York and Hong Kong – but it looks like its skyline's in for a shift – upwards.
How do Londoners feel about that? Well, it turns out they're pretty split.
According to a poll carried out by Ipsos Mori, around one in three of us thinks the Gherkin is the best skyscraper in the city (when asked out of 13), and 45 per cent of the 500 people surveyed think tall buildings have improved the way London looks.
That said, over half of us wouldn’t live in a building over 20 storeys high (i.e. a skyscraper), with 61 per cent saying they'd prefer working in one than living the high life. 27 per cent would live in one, though.
After Foster’s “Erotic Gherkin”, which took a majority 36 per cent when it came to popularity, the shard came in second. The Barbican, with its jenga-esque Lauderdale Tower, was chosen by just two respondents.
| Skyscraper | No. of people who think it's the best |
| St Mary’s Axe (better known at the Gherkin) | 180 |
| The Shard | 110 |
| The Leadenhall Building | 42 |
| One Canada Square | 40 |
| Strata Tower 29 | 29 |
| St George’s Wharf | 22 |
| 20 Fenchurch Street | 18 |
| Tower 42 (NatWest Tower) | 6 |
| Broadgate Tower | 5 |
| Centre Point | 5 |
| St Helen’s (the Aviva Tower or Commercial Union building) | 5 |
| The Heron Tower | 4 |
| Barbican | 2 |
| None of these | 25 |
| Dont’t know | 4 |
25 per cent don't think skyscrapers improve the capital and, when it comes to building more, 32 per cent think we’ve got too many already.
For 39 per cent, however, the 200+ towers on their way are good news, with rougly the same thinking the level of development's being controlled effectively, keeping heady heights at an acceptable level.