Richard Rogers Partnership has reiterated its pride in designing the Millennium Dome despite the threat of it being demolished at the start of next year. Landowner English Partnerships said this week that knocking the dome down was a possibility.
However, a Richard Rogers Partnership spokesperson said: “Knocking it down was always an option. It certainly wasn’t in our remit to prescribe its future. “Our pride in the project was in getting it in on time and on budget. What happened to the public perception of the dome is completely outside of us.”
English Partnerships’ announcement follows the further crisis to hit the dome this week when Nomura pulled out of the agreement to take it over. Architects of the zones within the dome also repeated their pride in the finished product this week. John Tollit, director of Faith Zone designer Eva Jiricna Architects, said: “We all feel that it is sad it is not the success it deserves to be. All the designers did the best job they could.” A spokesperson for Mind Zone designer Zaha Hadid said she, too, had been saddened by events.
He said: “The overall context of negative critique means our work has been pitched in with the whole thing. But we do feel proud of what we have done and don’t regret being associated with the overall effort.”
BNW Enterprise, which built the Body Zone, stressed the popularity of its work. Director Paul Warwick said: “The Body Zone was the only bit that got any good press. We did a good job regardless of whether they can’t handle their money.”
