London's Futurist City

Trinity project got the go-ahead from the City of London. You might not have heard of Trinity. It’s a cosy threesome of office buildings set for construction in that obscure corner of the City known as Minories. Just shy of 100 m tall, its loftiest section will stand taller than the Westminster Clock Tower.

Not so exciting in its own right. But when you look at some of the other upcoming projects around town, a trend emerges. Architects seem to have a newfound penchant for the bulky and bulbous, in three shades of grey.

Take Foster’s ‘cyborg cathedral’ (left, above), a development in Walbrook just a few feet shorter than St Paul’s. Its unusual profile has led some to dub it the Darth Vader helmet. The ponderous, melting mass will replace the little-lamented Bucklersbury House.

Then there’s this Allies and Morrison brute (right) at 120Moorgate, which recently received planning permission. The Pythagorean plaything was last seen 400 miles off Newfoundland, where it came off best against a certain RMS Titanic.

What’s going on? Is the City getting all defensive, fluffing up its feathers to look all big and hard?  Do we approve of these body-building buildings?

This is how London will look in the future: