Eye: The Story Behind the London Eye

Sweeping one of the world’s most famous skylines at 135 metres in height, the London Eye is the largest observational wheel in the world, and provides a spectacular 30 minute ‘flight’ over the capital. But if it had not been for the vision, commitment and sheer persistence of David Marks and Julia Barfield, the husband and wife team of architects behind the project, the London Eye might never have been built. Against the backdrop of New Labour’s pre-millennium Britain, prominent public figures attacked and defended the project, there were unprecedented design and construction problems to overcome, and Marks and Barfield had to fight every inch of the way to maintain the integrity of their vision. This seminal moment in British architecture is celebrated through the dazzling photography of Marcus Robinson, insightful writing by The Guardian journalist Steve Rose, and the clean and modern design of Neville Brody’s Research Studios.