Coming out of the Eurostar terminal at St. Pancras recently, I spotted a series of posters for London’s newest retail and leisure attraction at Battersea Power Station, an iconic building which once appeared on a Pink Floyd album called Animals with an inflatable pig between the four towers (1977).
I had three hours before the last train north at 2200 so a trip to Battersea seemed like a good idea, and I took the Northern Line to Kennington to pick up the other branch from Charing Cross to Battersea Power Station, the only tube station with the word Station in its name. This gave rise to a debate when it opened in 2021 as to whether this new terminus should be called “Battersea Power Station Station”! It’s a short walk to the building, an Art Deco feast dating from 1935 which at one time supplied a fifth of London’s needs. Closed and derelict since the mid-1980s, the whole 42-acre site has been redeveloped by Malaysian investors, and it opened to the public in October 2022. They must be proud of their success.
Stuffed full of high-end retailers including Rolex, Cartier and Apple, there are three floors to explore including a cinema and Lift 109 which takes you up inside the north-western cooling tower to the top from where you can view 360 degrees inside the lift car 109 metres from the ground. Just think, if they had measured it in yards, it would be Lift 119 instead. However, the adult price for the ascent is £23.60 for adults and £17.55 for under 16s. Luckily it had closed for the evening, so I was not going to be tempted.
The malls echo what the power station was like in its heyday, and one of the restaurants is set up in one of the old control rooms, complete with original equipment. A wide range of eating establishments are available late into the night, and surrounding streets have been built up alongside where there were once coal trains stabling. On the western edge is The Arches beneath the railway line where a row of bars and restaurants appealed to the late-night visitors.
I had intended to return on the Northern Line tube to Kings Cross despite the listing of four consecutive trains to Edgware via Charing Cross on my arrival. The Arches had led down to the River Thames and the river bus pontoon from which I took the photograph shown here which was the only view available of all four towers. A boat to North Greenwich was due in two minutes and could take me in 23 minutes to Blackfriars where the train could take me to St Pancras, ideal for my train at Kings Cross.
The fare for a trip on the Thames Clipper (now sponsored by Uber) is £9 in the central zone, a substantial hike from what it used to be, even if you use an Oyster card. But it enabled a good view of the South Bank and the receding Power Station, and the Houses of Parliament on the north side. I arrived back at Kings Cross to catch the last and cheapest train of the night arriving at 0122 in Durham. Battersea is worth seeing, even though I didn’t spend any money there and left a deposit at the public lavatories instead. But I will return to marvel at both the architecture and the prices!
Remember March is a good month to visit London by LNER, Grand Central or Lumo. Come April, fewer cheap tickets are available, and prices creep up for the summer season.
