The London Eye is a giant Ferris wheel
situated on the banks of the River Thames in London, England.
The entire structure is 135 metres (443 ft) tall and the wheel has a
diameter of 120 metres (394 ft).The London Eye was designed by architects
Frank Anatole, Nic Bailey, Steve Chilton, Malcolm Cook, Mark Sparrowhawk, and
the husband-and-wife team of Julia Barfield and David Marks.Mace
were responsible for construction management, with Hollandia as the main
steelwork contractor and Tilbury Douglas as the civil contractor. Consulting engineers
Tony Gee & Partners designed the foundation works while Beckett Rankine
designed the marine works.Nathaniel Lichfield and Partners
assisted The Tussauds Group in obtaining planning and listed building consent
to alter the wall on the South Bank of the Thames. They also examined
and reported on the implications of a Section 106 agreement attached to the
original contract.
The London Eye was formally opened by the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair,
on 31 December 1999, although it was not opened to the public until 9 March
2000 because of technical problems. Since its opening, the Eye has become a
major landmark and tourist attraction.Since 1 January 2005, the Eye has been
the focal point of London's New Year celebrations, with 10-minute displays
taking place involving fireworks fired from the wheel itself.
In 2006 the Tussauds Group bought out the other two
joint owners, British Airways and the Marks Barfield family (the
lead architects). Following Merlin Entertainments' purchase of the
Tussauds Group in 2007, it now owns 100% of the Eye. British Airways continued
its brand association, but from the beginning of 2008 the name 'British
Airways' was dropped from the logoDuring the bidding process of the 2012
Olympic Games, the London bid organisers announced the Olympic
emblem would be attached to the Eye for the duration of the 2012 Summer Olympics.
In 2009 Merlin Entertainments opened a preflight
4D Experience at The London Eye, which is included in the ticket price. The
newly refurbished ticket hall and 4D cinema experience was designed by
architect Kay Elliott working with Merlin Studios project designer Craig Sciba.
Merlin Studios later appointed Simex-Iwerks as the 4D theatre hardware specialists.
The film was written and directed by 3D director Julian Napier and 3D produced
by Phil Streather. The same year the first stage of a £12.5 million
capsule upgrade started. Each capsule was taken down and floated down the river
to Tilbury Docks in Essex.
0 comments:
Post a Comment