20 Fenchurch Street

20 Fenchurch Street stands in the City of London’s financial quarter on Fenchurch Street. It is a 38-storey skyscraper designed by Rafael Viñoly and completed in 2014. The building’s top-heavy shape gives it the nickname ‘Walkie-Talkie’ because it resembles a handset. A three-floor ‘sky garden’ occupies the top floors, reached by express lifts. Office floors sit below, with a viewing deck above them. The tower’s south side uses external ventilation to cut solar gain, while the east and west faces have deep sun shades. The tower was scaled down from nearly 200 m after objections from heritage groups worried about its effect on St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London. A public inquiry in 2007 allowed the revised plan to proceed. In 2015 the building won the Carbuncle Cup for the worst new UK building. The owners changed hands in 2017 when Lee Kum Kee Groups bought it for £1.3 billion. The previous 1960s block, 91 m tall, was demolished top-down in 2008. Visitors reach the sky garden via two express lifts that serve the top three floors. The garden offers a large viewing area, terrace, bar and two restaurants, though access is restricted. The south side once focused sunlight into a beam hot enough to scorch streets and melt cars, earning the nickname ‘Walkie-Scorchie’. A permanent awning now blocks the glare. From the garden, views stretch across the City towards the Thames and beyond.