If you’re a fan of the Sky Garden, you’re going to love 120 Fenchurch Street – the City’s lush, new roof garden which opens to the public in August this year. A high-rise, outdoor oasis of tranquillity, the garden offers 360 degree views across the capital from a truly verdant vantage point. As an admirer of both gardens and high-rise towers, I was excited to be invited for a sneak preview last week.

Roof garden at 120 Fenchurch Street

The Crystal garden is one of six new viewing platforms planned for the City over the next decade as a proliferation of new towers shoot up to create a Manhattan vibe in the heart of London.    As the buildings become more densely packed, the space lost at ground level will be replaced by these top story platforms – all of which will be publicly accessible.

Sign for the Garden at 120 Fenchurch Street

120 Fenchurch Street

Owned by Italy’s largest insurance firm, Generali, 120 Fenchurch Street is a fifteen story state-of-the-art office block comprising ground level retail space, a new public passageway and a restaurant owned by the D&D Group, (the masterminds behind The German Gymnasium in King’s Cross).  The office block will be M&G’s new Headquarters.

green walls at 120 Fenchurch Street roof gardens

As soon as you turn into 120 Fenchurch Street, you’re immediately struck by the curated art ceilings shimmering above.  Gentle waves ripple across the animated LED screens soothing away the day’s tensions as you’re enveloped into the natural world.

LED art screens at the entrance to 120 Fenchurch Street

The screens carefully curated video footage displays the four different seasons to correspond with the real-world seasonal changes taking place around us.   Not to be outdone by the art ceilings, the building’s upper floors are glazed with a reflective treatment that constantly changes colour to match the changing tones of the sky above – creating a cascading rainbow of light throughout the day and evening.

The roof garden

Whisked off to the roof garden, a collective gasp is emitted as we survey the lush greenery that surround us. Delicate pink roses add a splash of colour to the immaculately manicured green walls while wispy trails of Wisteria snake round the steel pergola canopies.

Steel pergola canopies at 120 Fenchurch Street

Elegant wooden benches merge seamlessly into the spacious walkways that zig-zag across the perimeter of the rooftop.

bench seating at at the 120 Fenchurch Street roof garden

The platform provides the ideal lunch break sanctuary or post-work retreat far removed from the hustle and bustle of life below – with the added bonus of breathing in relatively pollutant-free air. Here’s hoping for an Indian summer and plenty more visits to the roof garden before the winter chill has us scurrying back indoors.