Archinect - News

Plans for London’s Sphere are no more as developers abandon project

2024-01-09T11:29:00-05:00

The developers behind the proposed MSG Sphere in London have withdrawn plans for the project. In a letter to the UK government’s Planning Inspectorate, developers Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSG) said that the scheme had become “merely a political football between rival parties.”

Plans for the Sphere first emerged in 2018, with planning permission filed in March 2019. London’s mayor Sadiq Khan was originally supportive of the scheme upon its announcement, but a combination of negative feedback in planning officer reports and backlash from locals saw Khan refuse the project permission in November 2023.

The saga continued in December when the UK’s Housing Secretary, Michael Gove, asked for the plans to be personally reviewed by the Planning Inspectorate, which falls under his department. With both a UK-wide general election and London mayoral election set to take place in the country later this year, the project was set to become a major campaign issue between Gove’s ruling C...

UK Housing Secretary Gove will re-review London Sphere planning permission after Mayor's refusal

2023-12-02T03:00:00-05:00

Two weeks after London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced his refusal of planning permissions for the controversial MSG Sphere development planned in East London, the UK’s housing chief has issued a rebuke that may leave some glimmer of hope for the project’s eventual realization.

Several UK-based outlets are now reporting that Housing Secretary Michael Gove has asked the London Legacy Development Corporation to have the plans reviewed personally by his office before a final decision can be made. The countermand means another six week’s wait for the project, which has caused a torrent of backlash from critics and local residents since first being introduced in January of 2018.

James Dolan, Executive Chairman of the Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp., however, told the Evening Standard that Khan’s decision represented the “end of the line” for his company’s pursuit of the project in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Previously on Archinect: So much for the controversial London Sphere afte...

So much for the controversial London Sphere after Mayor Sadiq Khan refuses planning permission

2023-11-20T18:54:00-05:00

The proposed MSG Sphere in East London has been scrapped with the late decision by Mayor Sadiq Khan to refuse planning permissions over grounds that its design causes a public nuisance to residents of the surrounding Stratford district.

The long-controversial Sphere had been derided by critics and locals alike since first being revealed in January of 2018. Myriad attempts at halting the application process had been lodged in the years leading up to Monday's decision. Populous, which has also developed its well-reviewed twin in Las Vegas, was responsible for the 21,500-capacity design proposal.

The issue of light pollution had always been a critical factor in its pending success as a proposed entertainment venue sited in place of the 4.7-acre former coach park of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Khan’s decision cited the issue along with two other factors for the refusal, including its huge operational costs and an overall lack of green credentials for the project. Its impact on se...

Populous' London MSG Sphere is on the cusp of final approval in spite of objections

2022-03-17T11:58:00-04:00

A planning report for the scheme acknowledges criticism of the Sphere for its scale and massing, its impact on Stratford Station, and the impact of advertising on nearby residents. But it says the Sphere would ‘establish a strong sense of place at a scale that is not considered to be excessive, taking account of the established scale of surrounding buildings.

More than 1,000 objections were lodged against the project, which will come before the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) for a final approval vote on Tuesday. Their voices echo the derision Guardian critic Oliver Wainwright and others have parroted against the giant LED display’s ungainly light and noise pollution, murky politics, and sky-high price tag.

The public consultation process has been delayed several times over, but now appears to be inching towards the finish line, bringing out some of the opposition’s bigger names in a last-ditch effort to stop the Sphere from happening.

Previously on Archinect: Future of MSG Sphere London still undecided

“We are calling on the LLDC to refuse MSG’s application for a new venue in Stratford and encourage the Mayor of London to formally oppose this project in order to protect Newham’s residents and existing businesses from this inappropriate development,” a spokesperson for AEG, which operates London’s O2 Arena said in a letter ...

Photos: First V&A East building tops out in East London ceremony

2021-12-15T13:42:00-05:00

Exciting news in the museum world as the first site of the long-awaited Victoria & Albert Museum’s East extension has officially topped out as of this week.

The new V&A East has been years in the making. After overcoming roadblocks which threatened its existence beginning with sharp public criticism at its inception in 2016 and lasting all the way until this past fall, when it was announced that a much-heralded partnership with the American Smithsonian institution had to be called off thanks to unforeseen circumstances caused by the pandemic.

The O'Donnell + Tuomey-designed building is one of two slated to transform East London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park into a premier destination for the city’s artistic community.

The building was inspired by an x-ray of Cristóbal Balenciaga’s 1956 silk taffeta dress and will house a slate of progressive exhibitions and an employment program which includes the newly-established V&A East Youth Collective along...

New rendering reveals the temporary ABBA Voyage concert venue in East London

2021-09-07T19:49:00-04:00

As part of a concert series meant to promote the group’s first album release in 40 years, legendary Swedish pop group ABBA is pairing with one British architecture firm for a new 3,000-capacity concert venue nestled into a space originally designed for the 2012 Olympic games.

The band tapped Stufish Entertainment Architects for the design of the new temporary structure, which will be located in East London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

The park is already host to the city’s 80,000-seat Olympic Stadium as well as an aquatics center designed by Zaha Hadid.

The newly unveiled plans call for a hexagonal, timber-clad construction that will house a variety of performance functions, including a main stage and box office space in addition to bars and a covered concourse area with food stalls for fans flocking to the interactive experience.

Concertgoers will also have access to private dance booths in a highly technical scheme that will feature the display of avatars who will perform se...

MSG Sphere London proposal is taking shape; to feature world's 'largest and highest resolution LED screen'

2019-03-27T13:44:00-04:00

Details and designs have been revealed for the MSG Sphere London, a planned venue that would hold up to 21,500 people. [...] The Madison Square Garden Company (MSG), which is behind the New York concert and sports venue of the same name, have bought a 1.9-hectare (4.7-acre) site in Stratford, adjacent to the Olympic Park and Westfield shopping centre, that was used as a coach park during the 2012 London Olympics.

Image: Madison Square Garden Company

Initially rumored in January 2018, London's sphere-shaped music venue proposal, designed by Populous, has substantially taken shape, and the Madison Square Garden Company (MSG) behind the project has reportedly now filed planning documents. The plans have been received favorably by London mayor Sadiq Khan.

Image: Madison Square Garden Company

"According to the planning document, the sphere will be covered in LED panels that can display high-definition concert footage or advertising images – the designs suggest that the imagery will be clearly visible 150 metres away," reports The Guardian.

The project's website even touts the display wall as "the largest and highest resolution LED screen in the world."

Image: Madison Square Garden Company

Critics of the proposal have launched a petition against it, citing light pollution, increased traffic, failure to build housing at the site instead, and also the close connection of MSG executive chair, James Dola...

Smithsonian London outpost confirmed

2018-04-10T14:16:00-04:00

The Smithsonian Institution has confirmed that it will work with the Victoria and Albert Museum to set up a joint gallery and exhibition programme in East London, on the former Olympic site. Yesterday (9 April) the Smithsonian’s regents (trustees) gave formal approval for their first base outside the US.

We first reported about the Smithsonian Institution's interest in setting up its first-ever satellite gallery outside of the U.S. back in 2015. A lot has changed since then, and evolved, scaled-back plans now foresee a collaboration with the V&A.

London MSG concert venue confirmed; new Sphere designs unveiled for Las Vegas

2018-02-09T16:08:00-05:00

The Madison Square Garden Company (MSG) confirmed on Friday that it wants to build the Sphere, a glazed orb with up to 18,000 seats and room for 5,000 standing, beside the Olympic Park in east London. Designs of a similar “sphere” planned for Las Vegas suggest that the vault of the roof will become a giant screen for vast projections, which could evoke the sensation of being underwater or in a forest.

Rumors about a monumental sphere-shaped music venue proposal for London seem to be gaining substance: The Guardian reports that the New York-based Madison Square Garden Company confirmed its plans to build a glazed orb — designed by Populous — for over 20,000 concert goers near the Olympic Park.

This interior rendering of Sphere Las Vegas suggests the capabilities of the dome's projection screens. Image: The Madison Square Garden Company

MSG also just revealed designs for a similar venue in Las Vegas, called Sphere, which will already break ground later this near the Venetian and Palazzo complex. The surface of Sphere reportedly boasts 190,000 linear feet of LED lighting on the exterior and 180,000 square feet of high-resolution screens on the interior, turning it into a giant, domed 360-degree screen for image and video projections, depending on the needs for each event that is being hosted.

Designs for a giant 'Golf Ball' concert venue in London emerge

2018-01-24T14:50:00-05:00

London’s suggestive skyline already boasts a Gherkin, a Walkie Talkie and a Cheesegrater. Soon they may be joined by the Golf Ball. According to plans seen by the Guardian, a giant glass sphere taller than St Paul’s Cathedral could be built next to the Olympic park in east London. [...] One design visualisation shows that the lower half of the orb would be fitted with tiered seating, while the upper half would form a spectacular vaulted roof.

The Guardian has published a rendering of a new proposed concert venue resembling a giant glass sphere that could even dwarf St Paul's Cathedral. In typical London fashion, the project near the Olympic Park has already been dubbed "the Golf Ball," however the design's fate and origins remain unconfirmed. According to the paper's sources, the scheme was commissioned by the NY-based Madison Square Garden Company with Populous as the architect.

V&A East project update

2016-04-21T12:02:00-04:00

A key part of the V&A’s expanding family of sites dedicated to the past, present and future of the designed world, V&A East is a brand new civic space and cultural destination that will form part of the Olympic legacy project taking shape at Stratford Waterfront.

The seven-storey building is being designed by award-winning architectural practice O’Donnell-Tuomey and is part of the masterplan developed with Allies and Morrison for the new educational and cultural district in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London. At 18,000 sq metres, V&A East will sit directly opposite Zaha Hadid’s London Aquatics Centre and adjacent to a group of partners with which the V&A has great creative synergy: Sadler’s Wells, UAL’s London College of Fashion and UCL (University College London).

V&A East will be an entirely new kind of civic institution. At its core will be the ability and remit to respond quickly to current affairs, and to use objects, the V&A collection, collaborations and displays to in...

Smithsonian to open satellite space in London

2015-01-27T13:37:00-05:00

Today, the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution authorized museum officials to explore opening its first-ever international exhibition gallery. [...] go-ahead to "develop terms for an agreement" with the London Legacy Development Corp. to create a new exhibition space in London at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, home to the 2012 Games and a new cultural center. In the Smithsonian’s 168-year existence, this site would be the first international venue to house a long-term exhibition.

London's £12bn Olympic park opens up to the public

2014-04-04T13:50:00-04:00

Almost 10 years and £12bn in the making, the full extent of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park will finally open to the public on Saturday, revealing "the biggest new park in Europe for 150 years", magicked from the mud at the bottom of the Lea Valley. Stretching for 230 hectares (568 acres) around a knotted tangle of waterways and rail lines, it is, says its maker, the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), the size of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens combined [...].