The building
A spire sketched on a menu, built out of 11,000 pieces of glass
The Shard is the tallest building in the United Kingdom and, at 309.6 metres, the tallest in Western Europe. Its viewing gallery sits at 244 metres — but the story starts with a pen, a napkin and an architect who disliked tall buildings.
The napkin sketch, 2000
Renzo Piano was, by his own account, no fan of skyscrapers. When developer Irvine Sellar invited him to Berlin in 2000 to discuss the site above London Bridge station, Piano said as much — then picked up a pen and drew a tapering spire rising out of the Thames, its glass shards leaning away from each other and never quite meeting at the top. The sketch was made on a restaurant menu. The finished tower still follows it closely.
Irvine Sellar and the fight for permission
Sellar, a former market trader turned property developer, bought Southwark Towers in 1998 and spent the next five years defending the idea of a very tall building beside a protected view of St Paul's. English Heritage and others objected. A public inquiry in 2003 weighed the arguments, and the then Deputy Prime Minister granted consent that November on the grounds of exceptional design quality and the site's exceptional transport links.
Building it, 2009–2012
Work started in 2009. The tower was built top-down and bottom-up at the same time — the concrete core rising while the basement was still being excavated — to save months on a cramped site wedged over a live railway station. The Shard topped out in 2012 and was inaugurated that July with a laser show. The viewing gallery, The View from The Shard, opened to the public on 1 February 2013.
Who owns it
The Shard is owned by the LBQ group of companies. The State of Qatar holds roughly 95% of the equity, with Sellar Property Group retaining around 5% and continuing to lead the development and management of the wider London Bridge Quarter.
Key facts
- Total height
- 309.6 m
- Storeys
- 95 (72 habitable)
- Glass panels
- 11,000
- Viewing gallery
- Levels 68, 69 & 72
Timeline
2000
Developer Irvine Sellar meets architect Renzo Piano in Berlin. Piano sketches a spire rising from the Thames on a restaurant menu.
2003
A public inquiry tests the scheme against heritage objections. Permission is granted in November.
2009
Construction begins on the London Bridge site, replacing Southwark Towers.
2012
The Shard tops out at 309.6 metres and is inaugurated in July as Western Europe's tallest building.
2013
The View from The Shard opens to the public on 1 February.
See it from the inside
Levels 68, 69 and the open-air Skydeck at 244 metres.