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Boris's Tower On The Olympic Park


Mr Tickle
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How did you decide that you liked the Orbit tower if you had not seen what it looks like? :huh: (all I did was a quick google image search to find those 2 pictures) :huh:

Of course i have seen it... But only in aerial pictures and rendings, in these ones it seems its too close to the stadium... (i dont like that part) and looks a bit messy, but as i said lets wait till its finised ;) I think it will look great when finished and at night!

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This is no Eiffel Tower.

It isn't like London was lacking an icon - Big Ben, Tower Bridge, the London Eye - these are all instantly recognizable and strikingly elegant.

This messy collection of plumbing pipes is only 20 meters taller than the towers of Parliament. It lacks all the elements that make for an icon - it isn't beautiful, it isn't elegant, it isn't tall, it isn't particularly well located (after the Olympics, only die-hards would bother to visit), it isn't likely to offer any outstanding views (London Eye is better for that) and it is increasingly tied to the egos of a couple of men who are considered buffoons.

But it certainly is rich with all the components of a folly.

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Of course i have seen it... But only in aerial pictures and rendings, in these ones it seems its too close to the stadium... (i dont like that part) and looks a bit messy, but as i said lets wait till its finised ;) I think it will look great when finished and at night!

Sorry, daewebo...you back Madrid, think this ugly blob called the Orbital is OK. Doesn't say much about you backing winners.

Again, it gives me hope that Reno has a good shot because your bets are all off!!

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Sorry, daewebo...you back Madrid, think this ugly blob called the Orbital is OK. Doesn't say much about you backing winners.

Again, it gives me hope that Reno has a good shot because your bets are all off!!

Its thinking positive, you not gonna critise this tower im just saying it might look good in a future. And i dont back Madrid... Its my second choice, but it will be nice see Madrid winning because the've tried alot and Slain is growing fast in sports....actually im backing Istanbul... That is actually a fact, 2022 will be in europe!!! :P

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Nope, NOT if Munich is NOT running!! U forget the 2 rules of Olympic hosting: "8"s go to Asia, and the WOGs swing around to the USA every 20-22 years: 1960 - 80 - 2002 - 2022!! :P

I dont belive in that rules anymore... Since germany wins ever 20 years... 1954-1974; 1990-2010 and they didnt win on 2010. :huh: If Munich changes its mind (still long time for 2013...) then its highlly probable Munich wins. I'm thinking that Anchorage will be better than Reno.

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I dont belive in that rules anymore... Since germany wins ever 20 years... 1954-1974; 1990-2010 and they didnt win on 2010. :huh: If Munich changes its mind (still long time for 2013...) then its highlly probable Munich wins. I'm thinking that Anchorage will be better than Reno.

:lol::lol::lol: U're so odd. Wishing cities that are NOT interested in running. Anchorage is NOT interested.

Based on your wrong choices, I KNOW Reno will make the shortlist!!

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:lol::lol::lol: U're so odd. Wishing cities that are NOT interested in running. Anchorage is NOT interested.

Based on your wrong choices, I KNOW Reno will make the shortlist!!

If Munich bids i dont see Reno shorlisted, it will be Munich, Oslo, Davos... If they dont, Reno will be shortlisted and maybe having a small chance, the IOC might want to give a reward to the USOC showing that, the revenue deal has finally solved. Nothing bad with wanting Alaska to host WOG, when ypu here Alaska you think in cold winters, when you here Reno you think of casinos... The only thing wrong with Reno is Reno... Lake Tahoe is perfect!! Reno not really for WOG....

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  • 1 month later...

I think it is surprising that the planners of the Orbit would promote that video on behalf of their creation. It is hardly a glowing review or inspiring response to the Orbit... the general response that is projected through that video could be described as 'tepid ambivalence' at best... Only time will tell of course, but I have my doubts that in 20 years there will be some level of public adoration and acceptance that the Eiffel Tower attracted over time in Paris despite how much Boris keeps trying to plant that comparative seed in the public consciousness.

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I agree; the Eiffel Tower comparison we hear every now and again is pretty silly.

My biggest initial worry about this tower, as you can see from earlier in this thread, was that it would overshadow the cauldron tower. I no longer think that'll be the case - in my mind I now equate it with a crazy version of the Beijing pagoda - so I'm less anxious about it now. How it'll come across on TV given that it's a very 3-dimensional work is another matter entirely.

At best this will be a successful tourist draw off the beaten track and something a bit different in the Olympic Park. It won't become an icon of London as some optimists claim, I really don't see that.

At worst, this will become an interesting and quirky folly. It isn't and won't be universally hated like an old crumbling 60s tower-block as some haters seem to claim.

I don't love it, nor do I really see the need for it (but it's art, so that's fine). I really need to see it close-up in person and go inside it and to the top to make a full judgment however.

And therein lies an annoying paradox about this thing. To experience it fuly you need to be in the belly of the beast, climbing it, seeing it from all angles. But the structures which allow you to do this - the staircase, the lifts etc. - are the very things which compromise it as an artwork. :blink:

Incidentally, I posted this in the London legacy thread, but it's worth mentioning here too. The OPLC have announced that they have secured an operator for the tower for the next 10 years...

http://www.fm-world....n-legacy-deals/

Edited by RobH
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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm almost certain this will be the only time I ever say this in this forum, but Wow, I love those pictures. London in the snow. Very cool.

PS - It didn't take 20 years to turn around public opinion on the Eiffel Tower. In fact, the notion that it was hated at first is largely a myth. It was the snooty arts community – not the general public - that rejected the early plans, and even they swiftly came around. By this point point in the Eiffel Tower's history (i.e. about 80% complete) is was already a wildly popular symbol of Paris. Stores throughout the city were flooded with every possible souvenir you could imagine with the tower's design.

How much Orbit merchandise is available in London these days?

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Thanks

I haven’t seen any merchandise for the Orbit yet I’m expecting that will be on sale from the Orbit when it

Opens. I’m excited to see what the merchandise will be like, build yourself kits perhaps.

I’m also excited to see where the caldron will appear in these panoramas.

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Just a shame where not hosting the winter Olympics,

I’m sure it will look just as good in the summer.

I’m wondering what sort of lighting the Orbit will have , because its mainly red it wont be able to change colour like the London eye. I suppose that’s where the silver staircase and viewing platform come in

As those parts will be able to change colour.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I know it's kinda moot, but here's something that would've looked great there in Olympic Park. I would've dug something like this!!

http://en.wikipedia....etropol_Parasol

Yep, that building in Seville is really spectacular. Instead, what the British public have got is a 'sculpture/tower' that looks like Godzilla ate a roller-coaster and crapped out its remnants all to gratify some Indian steel tycoon and his overhyped 'genius' of an artist in the form of Kapoor.

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