2-879-195 - Historic England Archive/Heritage Images

1 Finsbury Avenue, Broadgate, City of London, 03/09/1984. The newly completed office building at 1 Finsbury Avenue with a paved and landscaped concourse in front. The Finsbury Avenue complex was a three phase speculative office development by Rosehaugh Greycoat Estates in anticipation of the deregulation of the financial markets in 1986. It aimed to entice potential tenants in the financial services industry to a fringe area on the edge of the City through high quality design and construction. Designed by Peter Foggo of Arup Associates, Laing secured the management contract for the construction of each phase in turn. Work on phase one, 1 Finsbury Avenue began in December 1982 and was completed by September 1984 followed by phase two, 3 Finsbury Avenue, from October 1985 to December 1986 with work beginning on phase three, 2 Finsbury Avenue in January 1987 and complete by April 1988. The design for each of the three buildings followed a "shell and core" approach incorporating flexibility in the internal construction and allowing simple reconfiguration of space according to tenants needs. Laing undertook several contracts to refit office space in each of the buildings in subsequent years. 1 Finsbury Avenue is constructed around a central atrium with an octagonal glazed lantern roof providing daylight to the office space on all floors and in contrast to expectations from the dark bronze anodised aluminium and tinted windows of the exterior. The roof terraces’ stepped design and the brises soleil with diagonal bracing breaks up the silhouette and façade of the building and mitigate the impact of its size. The building became almost a blueprint for future developments of this kind. It won a RIBA design award in 1987 and was listed grade II in 2015. This photograph was used in the November 1984 edition of Team Spirit, the Laing company newsletter.