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BT Tower restaurant to turn again
Emma Rowley2 Nov 2009
The revolving restaurant at the top of the BT Tower is to reopen after 30 years.
The 620ft skyscraper, formerly known as the Post Office Tower, closed to the public in 1980 amid security fears. Now BT plans to open the 34th-floor venue and will approach chefs including Heston Blumenthal, Jamie Oliver and Gary Rhodes to oversee the restaurant.
Rhodes already runs a restaurant on the 24th floor of Tower 42, once the NatWest Tower, which was London's first building to surpass the BT Tower in height.
The revolving restaurant, used by BT for corporate hospitality and company events, is set to reopen around Christmas 2011 with seating for 60 to 70 diners. The BT Tower opened to the public in May 1966, with Billy Butlin, founder of the holiday camps, granted a lease to run the restaurant.
Sitting on the 10ft-wide revolving part of the floor, guests would take 22 minutes to complete a circuit as they dined. In the first year of opening, more than 100,000 people flocked to enjoy a 360 degree view of the city and dishes such as smoked salmon, beluga caviar and an extra-large steak.
An IRA bomb exploded in the 31st-floor lavatories in October 1971. Nine years later, BT's nationalised predecessor cited "security reasons" and closed the tower to the public.
In 1993, Labour MP Kate Hoey gave the BT Tower's absence from Ordnance Survey maps as an example of "seemingly trivial" information that remained officially secret. English Heritage declared the Tower a national monument in 2001 and it was given listed building status.
Rhodes's manager Caroline Teeling said the chef would "absolutely love to be involved". She added: "Funnily enough, it's something we have talked about a lot over the past few years - it is such an iconic building." A BT spokeswoman said: "We don't comment on rumour and speculation."
Reader views (8)
Great I'm really looking forward to it.
I agree with William, I love London, but I guess it must be like they say "tired of London tired of life"
Steve I think you should move to another city.
- Emma, London, uk, 16/01/2010 15:12
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I went to the BT tower in 1977, at that time there was not anything else like it, the revolving restaurant was such a novelty...I remember going to the the toilet and not finding my table as the restaurant had revolved....... will be re booking again...
- Karen Lumley, Hertfordshire, 02/11/2009 22:25
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Can't wait. It will be so good to take visitors for lunch or dinner.
- Francoise Pudney, London, 02/11/2009 16:54
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I took my mother here for lunch in 1979 when I was but a lad of 14. I've still got my letter from the head chef welcoming my visit and offering my mother a birthday cake - which never arrived, but I didn't feel like mentioning on the day.
Lunch for two came to a massive £15 and we sat through at least three rotations. This was an incredible restaurant, which left an impression on me as strong as when I dined at New York's ill-fated Windows on The World years later. It also had the fastest lifts in London!
- Simon, London, 02/11/2009 14:27
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Great news, can't wait. I think 'Steve' must live in a different city to me - I find London a vibrant, colourful and thrilling place to live.
- William, London, UK, 02/11/2009 13:41
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This used to be an IRA target,step forward Al Queda.How times change.
Who wants to look down at a filthy,grey,depressingly over populated shambles London's now become?
- Steve, London, 02/11/2009 11:26
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Fantastic news, I've always wanted to go up there.
- George, London, 02/11/2009 09:41
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I'd hope that either Heston or Gary would get the job, the problem is that these sort of restaurants generally have restricted space in their kitchens, Gary already deals with this in Twenty Four and the food is superb although the service could be better, I doubt it would have enough space for Heston’s creative dishes but Mr Oliver's restaurant food is frankly bland and over-rated although his recipe books are quite good for a quick and easy meal.
- Bob, Cheam, 02/11/2009 09:20
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