Battersea - A Wonderful Post Industrial Cathedral In Brick

I have always been fascinated by the massive former power station on the southern bank of the Thames just outside Waterloo Station. Its sheer scale and the symmetry of the four tall, creamy, round yellow chimneys always had me transfixed. I normally just viewed Battersea from my train window on the approach to the terminal.

Since its decommissioning in 1963, the future of the site had been under considerable speculation. Finally, after some fifty years of lying derelict, and many abortive attempts to reimagine the edifice, it has been reborn. A lengthy and complicated redevelopment programme has resulted in an innovative and exciting new Battersea.

Exorbitant sums have been invested by a Malaysian consortium since 2012. This has given the epic Grade Two Listed building a completely new lease of life stretching into the distant future.

On a wonderful warm spring morning, on a whim, I disembarked at Clapham Junction and walked to Battersea from that direction. I wanted to have a close look at what the developers had achieved to date.

It was relatively straightforward to navigate my way to Battersea Bridge. With the river in front of me, I then strolled along the embankment, enjoying the sunshine. I crossed the road at the attractive but seemingly weak Albert Bridge and found myself in the wonderful Battersea Park, which extends to some 200 acres. Joggers, walkers, and cyclists were out in force. The park looked an absolute picture. There were swathes of newly mown grass, areas of trendy wilding, and trees disporting wonderful displays of pink and white blossom. Gardeners were tending immaculate shrubberies and doing their utmost to keep things in tip-top condition.

The strengthening sun had by now burned off any vestiges of wispy cloud. It was a gorgeous day.

I stopped for a look at the London Peace Pagoda, a Buddhist shrine dedicated to the realisation of universal peace. The atmosphere within the park was certainly calm and serene. Particularly when compared with the traffic-clogged Chelsea embankment over on the other side of the Thames.

As a walking group of some 20 oldies sauntered past me, I stopped for a coffee and pain au raisin at a small café. Beyond me, the regular thwack of ball on racket showed that the tennis courts were doing rather well.

Crossing the road at Chelsea Bridge and then walking under the Grosvenor railway bridge, I quickly found myself on the fringes of the Battersea Power Station development. This area was known as Circus West Village and offered a range of different eateries, bars and coffee shops. Outlets were cleverly located under the railway arches.

Just beyond Circus West, I glimpsed the familiar sight of the old power station with its four iconic 50m high chimneys. I had seen it scores of times, but never in such awe-inspiring proximity.

Battersea A Cathedral in Brick

The four chimneys had also, of course, featured on the cover of Pink Floyd’s 1977 album ‘Animals’. An inflatable giant pink pig, tethered to the chimneys, was also memorably part of the artwork.

As I drew closer, the sheer majesty of the building was quite overwhelming.

Construction work at the site started in 1929. Six million bricks were used in making the building. I stared up from the base and realised what a colossal undertaking it must have been to produce a power station of such scale. Battersea was to provide London with 20% of her power for some 50 years before the plant was decommissioned in 1983. The Thames provided water for cooling and a route for coal from Newcastle.

A Different Angle

Battersea is really two power stations built back-to-back. During the construction phase, there was disquiet amongst many Londoners that the immense building would be a real eyesore. Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (who had designed the country’s iconic red phone boxes) was brought in as an architect. His primary role was to ensure that the end product would be more pleasing to the eye than originally planned. He produced a building in a brick cathedral style. This brought grandeur to what might have been an ugly, if functional, industrial building.

In 2012, Malaysian investors took on the enormous project of breathing life into this dormant and decaying piece of industrial archaeology. It was an immense undertaking, necessitating a complete dismantling and rebuilding of the four sentinel chimneys. There was also considerable remodelling and reconstruction elsewhere on the site.

The upper floors are now given over to impressive private apartments, which lie above several levels of retail operations. The shopping aspect is complemented by food and beverage outlets and other leisure and entertainment operations. Meeting rooms and business units are also available.

The Former Battersea Power Station

When looking around the impressive shopping mall, I marvelled at the sheer scale of the place and the beauty of the brickwork. Artfully reconfigured remnants of old industrial heritage are seen throughout the building. Hoists, pulleys and chains and other former pieces of power station machinery remain in situ as industrial objets d’art.

While the premium apartments command eye-watering high premiums, I noticed affordable homes had also been included in the overall scheme.

There are attractive walkways and acres of informal lawn areas and seating for relaxation and having lunch.

The entire area has been reborn and now even boasts a new tube station. I was very impressed with the transformation.