Welcome to Gotham City, London! £400m skyscraper complex inspired by Batman film planned for the capital
- Designs inspired by 'neo-gothic' architecture featured in Batman film
- It would stand 558ft (170 metres) tall and cost £391million to build
- If planning permission is approved it will be London's 13th highest building
- Construction work is expected to start at the beginning of 2015
With its looming towers and bright lights, London at night already looks like something from a fantasy world.
But now the capital could have another addition to its skyline - a skyscraper that wouldn't look out of place in Gotham City.
The planned office development, which has also been likened to a giant set of books on a bookshelf and a toast rack, would comprise of 10 'vertical slices' ranging from seven to 34-storeys high in London's financial district.
The designs were unveiled today and have taken inspiration from the 'neo-gothic' architecture featured in Tim Burton's Batman and Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight.
Holy cow! The planned development is said to be influenced by buildings featured in Tim Burton's Batman
Located in Leadenhall Street in the insurance industry's heartland, it would be 558ft (170 metres) tall at its highest - 10 metres shorter than the nearby Gherkin and would become the capital's 13th highest building.
The project is expected to cost about £391million.
Developer Henderson Global Investors also said it would consist of 890,000 square feet of offices and 20,000 square feet of shops.
Construction is planned to start in 2015 on the condition that it pre-lets 30 per cent of the building, with completion targeted for 2019.
Dizzy heights: The new building (centre) would be 558ft tall making it the capital's 13th highest building
Henderson bought the development plot, known as the Leadenhall Triangle, out of administration in 2011 for more than £175million.
The value of the building once fully let could be between £800million and £1billion, property experts said.
Geoff Harris, Henderson's director of property development, said the building is 'a vote of confidence in the City of London and a major boost to investment, growth and employment in the economy.'
It was designed to have a cascading shape so as not to spoil views of St Paul's Cathedral from Fleet Street.
Inspiration: The new building wouldn't look out of place in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight
Henderson's plans come amid a split in the office letting market in London's financial district with developers in the EC3 postcode district having more success among the relatively buoyant insurance industry versus the more broadly weak state of financial services firms and banks further afield.
The owners of the nearby Walkie Talkie skyscraper, which attracted headlines this month after sunlight reflected off its glass cladding melting parts of a Jaguar car and even fried an egg on the pavement, said in July they expect the tower to open two-thirds full next year on the back of strong demand from insurers.
Many have said the building will liken London to Gotham City featured in Tim Burton's 1989 version of Batman
Outside the insurance industry's heartland, construction on the 100 Bishopsgate tower, owned by Canadian developer Brookfield and the Pinnacle skyscraper, backed by Saudi Arabian investment manager SEDCO, has stalled amid a fruitless search for tenants.
Henderson will submit its plans to the City of London on September 23.
It hired Ken Shuttlworth's architectural practice Make, the architect behind UBS's headquarters in the City, to design the development.
