The landmark development opens its doors to the public for the first time in history today following a transformational eight-year restoration.
Nearly forty years after the lights were switched off at one of London’s best-loved landmarks, Battersea Power Station opens today, Friday 14 October, marking the first time the public can explore this iconic architectural masterpiece and enjoy the first of its unique shops, bars, restaurants and leisure venues.
Electric Boulevard, a new pedestrianised high street that runs between Gehry Partners’ Prospect Place and Foster + Partners’ Battersea Roof Gardens to the riverside neighbourhood’s Zone 1 London Underground Station, also opens today.
From Friday 14 to Sunday 16 October, and continuing Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 October, a free, five-day ‘Festival of Power’ will be on, with a programme of live performances, family-friendly activities, installations and more to celebrate the historic milestone. Headlining the festival is Arcadia’s Lords of Lightning, a duelling spectacle involving multi-million volt bolts being fired between the two ‘Lords’, hosted in the six-acre Power Station Park on the evening of Friday 14 October from 7pm.
Simon Murphy, Chief Executive Officer at Battersea Power Station Development Company, said: “Today marks a historic and hugely celebratory moment as we open Battersea Power Station and Electric Boulevard to the public. Many said it was impossible, several tried and failed, however through the commitment of our shareholders and with the support of many Public and Private sector stakeholders in the UK, we’ve succeeded in bringing Battersea Power Station back to life so that it can be enjoyed for generations to come. This opening is a fantastic boost for the local economy, creating over 2,500 jobs through the many shops, restaurants, offices and leisure venues opening here, as well as providing a new destination for London. We are truly thrilled to welcome the local community, Londoners and visitors from across the globe to come and explore this Grade II* listed landmark that many have marvelled at from afar for years. Now, for the first time, everybody can walk inside, interact with the magnificent architecture and experience all that the reborn Battersea Power Station has to offer.”
