How things change. Until a decade or so ago, nobody, at least not in Britain, aspired to live in a tower block. Councils up and down the land had built towers to house those who couldn’t afford the cherished Victorian terraced house, thirties semi, or detached bungalow. And so they became associated with poverty and deprivation, and, after the catastrophic collapse in 1968 of Ronan Point, in East London, with poor build quality too. Partly as a result of this event, it can still be difficult to this day, to find a lender prepared to offer mortgages on buildings over about 6 storeys, particularly if the building in question is an ex local authority block. Despite this background however, the top end of the housing market has recently been enthusiastically building ever higher towers. Most notable is the 50 storey Vauxhall Tower nearing completion by the river in SW8. Despite recent bad publicity when it was hit by a helicopter in the fog, it will doubtless have no shortage of buyers for its multi-million pound apartments. Meanwhile on the Isle of Dogs, among the cluster of towers of London’s new financial heart, are the twin Pan Peninsula Towers. And there on the thirty-somethingth floor, I photographed this palatial party pad with panoramic views.
