Five years late and £11m over budget, the Portsmouth landmark finally opens - despite the council's project manager getting stuck in the panoramic lift ...

The much-delayed opening of HGP’s troubled Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth caused something of a stir today, for all the wrong reasons.

As the crowds gathered at the foot of the 170 m tower for its official opening, the council’s project manager, David Greenhalgh, looked down on them - stuck in the external glass lift 30 m up.

Greenhalgh was trapped in the jammed lift for over an hour while abseiling engineers were called to fix the lift and release him.

The controversial millennium project is over budget by £11m and five years late. The original consortium charged with delivering the 170 m-tall observation tower collapsed and Mowlem eventually took over in November 2000.

Last month, trouble with the glass panoramic lift delayed the opening. Yesterday, operator Heritage insisted that the tower would be opened today without any further problems.