For all its faults, London is a pretty cool place to live.

Yes it’s expensive and a pint will cost you more here than anywhere else in the country, but it is full of iconic buildings and landmarks that make it a pretty unique city.

But what if some of these were completely different? How would London actually look?

To envisage it, Barratt Homes have released a set of computer-designed images showing rejected architecture and transport plans – and the outcome is incredible.


Trafalgar Square Pyramid

It would have had 22 steps, with each one paying tribute to each year of the two wars

< Slide Me > A 300 ft pyramid was proposed for Trafalgar Square

Did you know there had been plans made in the early 1800s to build a 300 ft pyramid in the centre of London to commemorate the victories of the Battle of Trafalgar and the Battle of the Nile.



It would have had 22 steps, with each one paying tribute to each year of the two wars.

Although there was no specific location marked for the pyramid, which would have been taller than St Paul’s Cathedral, in the 1820s land was cleared to make way for the area we now call Trafalgar Square.

< Slide Me > In the 1820s the land was cleared for the area that we now know as Trafalgar Square

Westminster Airport

You may recall plans for Thames Estuary Airport, which has had multiple proposals for its existence since the 1940s, and most recently by Boris Johnson while he was serving as London Mayor.

But did you know plans were submitted for an airport to be built over the Thames, directly next to the Houses of Parliament?

In 1934, plans were made for Westminster Airport, to help bring in more international travel into the centre of the city.

< Slide Me > An airport was also suggested for the Thames directly outside the Houses of Parliament

According to the blueprints, the airport would have been tall enough to accommodate the, ‘tallest masts of ships’, according to and 1934 edition of Popular Science Monthly, and would have been long enough for a single propeller aircraft to land.

There would have also been aircraft and fuel storage on a separate level underneath.

< Slide Me > There would have even been spaces underneath for aircraft and fuel

Central London Monrail

In the 1960s a monorail running through central London was proposed, as a way of reducing congestion on the roads and getting rids of buses.

Sadly, it was never given the green light, and it will just remain an idea for now.

< Slide Me > Think how cool it would be if this was a thing?

Crystal Palace Skyscraper

In 1851, in the midst of Britain’s manufacturing boom, Queen Victoria hosted the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park to show off more than 100,000 revolutionary and contemporary artifacts to potential trading partners around the world.

The Exhibition was hosted inside a giant structure made of glass and iron, which became known as the Crystal Palace.

When it finished, it was transferred to Penge Place in Sydenham (since renamed to Crystal Palace Park) where it remained until 1936 when it burnt down.

< Slide Me > This was a plan of what to do with the materials from The Crystal Palace

But before its move, an architect called Charles Burton pitched an alternative idea to use the glass and steel to build a 1,000ft structure, the same height as The Shard.

The idea was not used, which was probably a good thing as modern architects say that the building would have most likely collapsed under its own weight.

The idea was not used, which was probably a good thing as modern architects say that the building would have most likely collapsed under its own weight.

The Carlton Hotel

How it looked before it was destroyed (Picture: REX/Shutterstock)

This was was actually built in 1899, and and was leaps ahead of its competitors in terms of luxury and expense at the time.



Based in the central area of Haymarket, the upmarket hotel drew customers away from establishments such as the Savoy.

< Slide Me > The Carlton Hotel was the epitome of luxury until it was bombed in 1940

However, in 1940, it was heavily damaged by German bombs and had to close to guests and was finally demolished in 1957.

In its place now stands the New Zealand High Commission, an overseas post of the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

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