Warehouse Wednesday: Battersea Power Station

Derelict for many years, Battersea Power station has been restored, and converted into a posh shopping centre. 

Up close, this iconic building really is stunning, both inside and out. I'd always assumed that it has been constructed in one go, but in fact, Turbine Hall A, with two chimneys fore and aft, was finished first. Hall B, with one chimney followed, and the final corner, with its fake chimney, came last.

Hall A is lavishly appointed with Art Decco tiles, which survived all the years or dereliction in the 1980s. Built as the blitz raged, it's amazing that anyone cosidered a building as utilitarian as this worth the effort. A bit of a a hangover from the Victorian decoration of pumping stations?

Hall B is plainer, but still a far cry from the unadorned brickwork you might expect. Incidentally, there is some brick still on show at the front and back of the building, so its industrial origins can still be appreciated, and throw the posh shops and walkways into sharp relief.

Of course, I wasn't there to visit the shops, they are far too push for the likes of me! I wanted to go up the chimney, in Lift 109. 

After a short (and pointless IMHO) light show, it's time for the main attraction. We get in the lift, head up through a series of lights (not pointless) and pop out the top for a superb, panoramic view of the capital. 

I was lucky with the weather, and all I can say is, £17 (booking ahead) for 7 minutes, doesn't seem like too bad a deal. This sort of thing must be horrifically expensive to set up and operate. Yes, a bit longer would be nice, but it's long enough to take photos, and then to realise you just need to drink in the view without looking though a camera or phone screen. Some things are just too big for a photo.

You can see the rest of my photos from the trip on Flickr.