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Best buildings in London: Walkie Talkie
© Lukasz Pajor

In pictures: a trip up the Walkie Talkie (aka 20 Fenchurch Street)

We take a trip up London's latest skyscraper

Sonya Barber
Written by
Sonya Barber
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Last week, I donned my hard hat for a trip up the skeleton of the new kid of the London skyline, the bulbous 20 Fenchurch Street with ‘more up top’. The new 38-floor skyscraper, already affectionately known as ‘The Walkie Talkie’, is set to open in 2014 and will be packed full of lovely new offices of various sizes (19% of space has been pre-let). However, unless you’re planning on relocating your business to greater heights, I don’t expect this aspect to be of great interest to you. Instead, we’re most excited about what will be happening on those crowning floors: the Skygarden. It’s yet to be confirmed exactly what will be in the huge glass atrium apart from some plants and a still-to-be-decided restaurant, but, unlike the Shard, we do know that it will be free to go up and take in the view. And it is quite a view. The core of the building is already built, with the rest of architect Rafael Viñoly’s curvy shape rapidly developing around it.

Here are a few snaps from our peek around the site and ascent up the tower...

The view from across the marketing suite road. The building looks possibly less like a walkie talkie and more like its other nickname, ‘The Pint’. Or maybe we are just thirsty.

20 fenchurch street

Not a straight line in sight (ok, well maybe a few, but it is defo on the wonk).

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

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Watch your step.

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

The lower floors are already clad.

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

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Just don’t look down. Or was that up?

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

SPIDER CRANES!

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

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There’s a great view from the Shard from down the bottom…

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

…and again at floor 17.

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

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Not such a great view from the top yet though as most of it is obscured by pesky building work.

20 Fenchurch Street @ Sonya Barber

In fact, it is so close to the Shard that we reckon there should be a zip wire between them.

20 Fenchurch-Street

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