...Two Thousand Plus
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The new Millennium at the Tower lead to a hive of activity and fresh ideas which continued throughout the decade.
In Retrospect
In the Sixties, beaming signals along microwaves was a new concept, whereas today it is taken for granted. Once, hoards of visitors queued round the block to dine in the topofthetower restaurant and to admire the views over London; I wonder how many of them really appreciated the technology behind it all? Today, visitors to the Tower are there to support BT, either directly as business guests transacting new deals, or indirectly as patrons to the chosen charities, such as ChildLine. The Tower still draws the crowds and is truly an icon of the 21st century.
Repairs
Towards the end of 1998 the aerial galleries of the Tower were shrouded in blue plastic wrappings as part of a general programme of refurbishment, preparing the building for the new Millennium. Many specialist firms had been contracted to carry out the 'make-over' on the Tower.
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Externally the Tower and Podium was repaired. Internally the lifts were replaced and the corporate floors were extensively refurbished. |
Going Global
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2004 saw a change in the logo at the top, from the familiar BT Piper logo to a representation of the more generic 'connected world' logo. |
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The 30th October 2009 marked just 1000 days until London was due to host the 2012 Olympics and to make the date go with a bang, BT arranged a spectacular firework event which coincided with the launch of a brand new LED display at the top of the BT Tower. |
In November 2001 English Heritage proposed that the Tower be included in the statutory list of notable buildings. On 26th March 2003, Tessa Blackstone, Arts Minister of The Department for Culture, Media and Sport listed the BT Tower as a Grade II building. Six other buildings were also listed:-
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The status was granted by Sir Neil Cossons, chairman of English Heritage.
Elaine Harwood (English Heritage) said of the BT Tower: "The slimness of it and the way that nothing was demolished to create it. It sneaked up right in the middle of Georgian London's townscape. It doesn't disturb historic London, it just adds to it."
40th Birthday
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Forty years of the BT Tower, a birthday party to raise funds for Children In Need. |
The Tower often features in BT's support of ChildLine... It costs ChildLine £3 to answer each child's call for help. As a charity, ChildLine needs to raise more than £12 million every year to maintain the current service it provides to children and young people.
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A sponsored stair walk is a fun way to keep fit and raise money for charity! |
TV Programmes & Events
| Legoland | |
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In 2007, the Legoland model of the Tower was correctly showing the current BT logo. |
| TV-Towns | |
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In October 2007, ITV3 screened TV-Towns, in which the presenter Stuart Maconie explored the stories behind some of the UK's most-filmed locations. Here, Stuart interviews Tony Benn in what was once the 'Topofthetower' restaurant. |
| Radio | |
"Radio 1 DJ Annie Nightingale made an historic live broadcast from the top of the BT Tower in London. Entitled 'The Last Summer Sunrise' party of 2004, this all-nighter and webcast featured top breaks artists such as Meat Katie, Friendly, DJ Hyper, also starred US superstar DJ BT who flew in from Lost Angeles especially. The show became Radio 1's biggest specialist music show of the year on-line." |
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| ITP | |
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In November 2008, members of the Institute of Telecoms Professionals (ITP) had a pre-Christmas visit to the Tower, which included the TV editing suite, and of course the 34th floor. |
| 2009 - Britain's Greatest Machines with Chris Barrie: Machines that changed the face of Britain | |
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"1960s Revolution by Design" screened on 18th June included (very aptly) a visit to the revolving restaurant at the Tower. |
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Saturday - A novel by Ian McEwan (2005). |
Tower booklet 2001 ref....
With thanks to Justin McKeown of Grayling.
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