The London Eye is a giant Ferris wheel on the South Bank of the River Thames in London, England. The entire structure is 135 metres (443 ft) tall and the wheel has a diameter of 120 metres (394 ft).
It is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe, and the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over 3.5 million people annually. When erected in 1999 it was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world, until surpassed first by the 160 m (520 ft) Star of Nanchang in 2006 and then the 165 m (541 ft) Singapore Flyer in 2008. Supported by an A-frame
on one side only, unlike the taller Nanchang and Singapore wheels, the
Eye is described by its operators as "the world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel". It offered the highest public viewing point in the city[citation needed] until it was superseded by the 245-metre (804 ft) observation deck on the 72nd floor of The Shard, which opened to the public on 1 February 2013.
The London Eye, or Millennium Wheel, was officially called the
British Airways London Eye and then the Merlin Entertainments London
Eye. Since 20 January 2011, its official name is the EDF Energy London Eye following a three-year sponsorship deal.
The London Eye adjoins the western end of Jubilee Gardens (previously the site of the former Dome of Discovery), on the South Bank of the River Thames between Westminster Bridge and Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth
The London Eye was designed by architects Frank Anatole, Nic Bailey,
Steve Chilton, Malcolm Cook, Mark Sparrowhawk, and the husband-and-wife
team of Julia Barfield and David Marks.
Mace were responsible for construction management, with Hollandia as the main steelwork contractor and Tilbury Douglas
as the civil contractor. Consulting engineers Tony Gee & Partners
designed the foundation works while Beckett Rankine designed the marine
works.
Nathaniel Lichfield and Partners assisted The Tussauds Group in obtaining planning and listed building consent to alter the wall on the South Bank of the Thames. They also examined and reported on the implications of a Section 106 agreement attached to the original contract. Later, they also prepared planning and listed building consent applications
for the permanent retention of the attraction, which involved the
co-ordination of an Environmental Statement and the production of a
planning supporting statement detailing the reasons for its retention.
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