Canary Wharf is a privately owned central business district in London, England, located in the Isle of Dogs, Tower Hamlets. With the City of London and the West End, it constitutes one of the main financial centres in the United Kingdom and the world, and it is home to many of the world’s major financial corporations, including the headquarters of more than 150 major businesses.
The district was developed on the site of the former West India Docks in East London. Canary Wharf, together with Heron Quays and Wood Wharf, forms the Canary Wharf Estate, covering around .
History
West India Dock Company From 1802 until the late 1980s, the area now known as the Canary Wharf Estate was part of the Isle of Dogs (specifically Millwall) and Poplar. The West India Docks, a central feature of the area, were primarily developed by Robert Milligan (c. 1746–1809), who founded the West India Dock Company.
Port of London Authority The Port of London Authority was established in 1909 and took control of the West India Dock. The enterprise of Alfred Lewis Jones, a Welsh shipping magnate and a prominent figure in the Canary Islands, Spain, led to a constant stream of ships arriving into London's South Quay Dock. No. 32 berth of West Wood Quay in the Import Dock was built in 1936 with a two-storey transit shed for Fruit Lines Ltd, a subsidiary of Fred Olsen Lines, for the Mediterranean and Canary Islands fruit trade, gaining the name Canary Wharf.. Retrieved 22 July 2008
London Docklands Development Corporation After the 1960s, when cargo became containerised, the port industry began to decline, leading to the closure of all the docks by 1980.West India Docks (1803–1980) (Port Cities) accessed 22 July 2008 After the docks closed in 1980, the British Government adopted policies to stimulate redevelopment of the area, including the creation of the London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) in 1981 and the granting of Urban Enterprise Zone status to the Isle of Dogs in 1982.
The Canary Wharf of today began when Michael von Clemm, former chairman of Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB), came up with the idea to convert Canary Wharf into a back office. Further discussions with G Ware Travelstead led to proposals for a new business district and included the LDDC developing an inexpensive light metro scheme, the Docklands Light Railway, to make use of a large amount of redundant railway infrastructure and to improve access.
The project was sold to the Canadian company Olympia & York and construction began in 1988, master-planned by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill with Yorke Rosenberg Mardall as their UK advisors, and subsequently by Koetter Kim. The first buildings were completed in 1991, including One Canada Square, which became the UK's tallest building at the time and a symbol of the regeneration of Docklands. By the time it opened, the London commercial property market had collapsed, and Olympia and York Canary Wharf Limited filed for bankruptcy in May 1992.
Initially, the City of London saw Canary Wharf as an existential threat. It modified its planning laws to expand the provision of new offices in the City of London, for example, creating offices above railway stations (Blackfriars) and roads (Alban Gate). The resulting oversupply of office space contributed to the failure of the Canary Wharf project.
Canary Wharf Group In October 1995, an international consortium that included investors such as Alwaleed, bought control of the Canary Wharf Group for $1.2 billion. Paul Reichmann (of Olympia & York) was named chairman, and Canary Wharf went public in 1999. The new company was called Canary Wharf Limited, and later became Canary Wharf Group.
In 1997, some residents living on the Isle of Dogs issued a claim against Canary Wharf Ltd (Hunter v Canary Wharf Ltd) for private nuisance because One Canada Square, owned by the company, interfered with TV signals. However, the residents lost the case.The court found against the appellants (Hunter and others) as private nuisance legislation generally concerns "emanations" from land, not interference with such emanations. "Hunter and Others v. Canary Wharf Ltd./Hunter and Others v. London Docklands Corporation" House of Lords Session 1996–97. Retrieved on 23 March 2009.
Recovery in the property market generally, coupled with continuing demand for large floorplate Grade A office space, slowly improved the level of interest. A critical event in the recovery was the much-delayed start of work on the Jubilee Line Extension, which the government wanted ready for the Millennium celebrations.
In March 2004, Canary Wharf Group plc. was taken over by a consortium of investors, backed by its largest shareholder Glick Family Investments and led by Morgan Stanley using a vehicle named Songbird Estates plc.
Tallest buildings
In addition to being a leading global financial district in the United Kingdom, Canary Wharf is famous for a cluster of tall modern commercial complexes and residential high-rise buildings. Built from scratch since the early 1990s, Canary Wharf's rapid grown skyscraper cluster has dramatically transformed the skyline of London with modern architecture.Canary Wharf Group transforms London's skyline with modern architecture. Mia Daughenbaugh and David Bell South China Morning Post. 16 June 2014. Retrieved 17 December 2023.Dramatic pictures show just how much London's Canary Wharf has changed in 20 years. Rory Bennett MyLondon. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
As of August 2024, six of the United Kingdom's ten tallest buildings are located at Canary Wharf. The 100 Tallest Completed buildings in United Kingdom in 2024 Council on Tall Building and Urban Habitat. Retrieved 24 August 2024. One Canada Square (235 m (771 ft)) and Landmark Pinnacle (233 m (764 ft)) are the third and fourth tallest buildings in the United Kingdom. Newfoundland (220 m (720 ft)), Aspen at Consort Place (216 m (708 ft)), South Quay Plaza (215 m (705 ft)), and One Park Drive (205 m (673 ft)) hold the seventh to tenth positions. The 75-storey Landmark Pinnacle is the tallest residential tower in Western Europe.Landmark Pinnacle — Chalegrove Properties Canary Development. 4 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2023. Newfoundland is the tallest build-to-rent building in the United Kingdom.Vertus launches highest BTR apartments in the UK at Newfoundland Nick Biring. 24 October 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2023. 40 Marsh Wall (Novotel London Canary Wharf) is the tallest all-hotel building in the United Kingdom, and the tallest Novotel in the world.How tall is Canary Wharf? Canary Development. 12 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2023 One Canada Square, at , achieved a 21-year record of the tallest building in the United Kingdom from 1991 to 2012. With its distinctive pyramid pinnacle, the building is recognised as a London landmark, and has been featured in many films and television shows.Top 10 Tallest Buildings in the UK as of 2023 CivilNotePpt. Retrieved 13 February 2023.One Canada Square Canary Development, 9 March 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
In April 2026, JPMorgan Chase reached agreement with London City Airport over height restrictions and began preparing a planning application for a £3billion, tower at Riverside South that, when completed, will overtake One Canada Square as the tallest building in Canary Wharf.