A heady way to experience The O2!
The O2 dominates the Greenwich Peninsula on the edge of the Thames in east London. Standing tall at 52m, this activity certainly isn’t for the fainthearted, but if you do conquer the dome, you’ll be rewarded with amazing views. And you can be very proud of yourself for scaling the heights of The O2.
Internet sensations Dan and Phil have climbed Up at The O2 and they filmed their experience too. Have a little look at their
O2 Experience YouTube video - don't they look great in the climb suits and boots?!
Built in 1999 to host the Millennium Exhibition that ran from the 1st January to the 31st December 2000, the Millennium Dome was not without controversy. The budget was enormous, people complained at the design, where it was, what was going to go in it and what would happen to this gigantic marquee-like structure afterwards.
The O2 Arena - an instant success
The people needn’t have worried. The O2 was built actually inside and underneath the original dome's tensioned fabric roof, with the aim of hosting an array of leisure activities, entertainment and events. And what a success. The O2 has become the world’s busiest music venue since it opened in 2007. Selling over 1.8 million tickets to concert goers per year is an amazing achievement for the landmark that was dubbed a white elephant.
Experience the idea behind the design of The O2 first hand
And what we love about these experiences at The O2 is the fact that you will be seeing what all the fuss about this building was and whilst you’re climbing it, you’ll totally ‘get’ this landmark building. For example, those distinctive yellow supper towers that poke out of the top? There are 12 of them, all equidistant apart to represent the clock face - a nod to the significance of Greenwich for its Mean Time.
Whilst you’re walking up the sides of The O2 on your experiences, you might not realise it, but the dome is completely round. And it is actually 365metres in diameter, to represent, yes you guessed it, the number of days in the year. You see, architect Richard Rogers was quite clever when it came to his Dome. And now there’s no doubting that the big white dome has now become an iconic landmark of London.
