Apple’s circular “spaceship” campus in Cupertino isn’t the only fantastic new location where the company is setting up shop. The tech giant is opening an impressive new London headquarters at the iconic Battersea Power Station.
With its four gigantic chimneys, the complex should strike a chord with pop culture fans: The station is a true pop culture landmark most famously seen on the cover of Pink Floyd’s 1977 album, Animals.
The visually striking power plant, which has stood derelict for 33 years, has made an astonishing impact on pop culture. It’s been seen in a wide variety of music videos and album artwork, and it’s served as a set for TV shows and movies as diverse as The Beatles’ Help! and Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight.
The 500,000-square-foot site represents one of the biggest single office deals in London, outside the City and Docklands area, in the past two decades. The industrial-chic location will occupy six floors, with the gigantic building restored to its former glory.
New life for Battersea Power Station
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Apple’s new London HQ will house 1,400 staffers in the complex, which consists of twin coal-fired power plants that were built in the 1930s and 1950s. Power production at Battersea Power Station ceased in 1983.
Apple’s move will consolidate the company’s London-based employees, currently working at eight different sites, in one location. The campus eventually will offer enough space for 3,000 employees, so Apple can expand hiring in the U.K. capital.
The HQ is set to open in 2021 and has been confirmed by Apple, which told U.K. newspaper the Evening Standard that the new London campus will be based in a “magnificent new development at one of the city’s best-known landmarks.”
“This is a great opportunity to have our entire team working and collaborating in one location while supporting the renovation of a neighborhood rich with history,” an Apple spokesperson added.
The U.K. recently made overtures welcoming Apple as a post-Brexit deal, offering to give the company an international headquarters away from meddling EU regulation.
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
2 responses to “Apple’s massive new U.K. campus is a pop culture landmark”
“U.K. recently made overtures about welcoming Apple as a post-Brexit deal, that would give it an international headquarters away from meddling E.U. regulation.”
Which has already been rejected by Apple…
Just out of curiosity – EU allows Apple to sell stuff in all 28 countries without having to pay customs, specific VAT rates, and having to register as a VAT payer in all of those countries. That’s ‘meddling’ to you ?
Have you ever worked for an international company that sells products ? Do you have any idea how difficult it is to make business with countries outside the EEA, where customs hold your goods for months and ship it back because of a typo on the invoice ?
Or perphaps you mean having to actually pay taxes instead of channeling earnings to a non-existent R&D center is ‘meddling’ ?
Shocking level of ‘journalism’… at this point i’m not even surprised anymore. What I am shocked by is that you worked for the BBC… because the way you ‘report’ is more like The Sun…
With this Brexit thing ??? I really don’t think so !!! There is something REALLY weird and non sense on it…I doubt…Really doubt.