Britain> Sights & Attractions

Millennium Dome

The Millennium Dome is one of the most important attractions in Britain. It was built on occasion of the new millennium, as its name suggests. This marvellous structure is a sight to behold from all angles. It stands like an island in the Thames, and is most beautiful at dusk, when it lights up in spectral hues reflected on the river surface, its 95 yellow towers rising almost 100 metres into the sky.

The Dome was built on the meridian line in the Greenwich peninsula, England. Greenwich mean time is set on the basis of this dividing line between east and west at 0° Longitude. The site is just as important as the Dome itself. Greenwich is easily accessible by train and subway, and also a few minutes from London by boat. It features the remarkable Canary Wharf as a background setting.

The Dome is the biggest one-roof construction worldwide. Its diameter is a full 365 metres. It is interesting to note that the whole roof construction is lighter than the air inside the building. The dome cover was made of durable glass fibre material, and it rises 50 metres at the highest point.

The New Millennium Experience Company Ltd ran the Millennium Dome project. It received partial financing from the Millennium Commission, an authority established to fund new millennium projects. The project for the dome was launched in 1994, started receiving state grants after 1996, and was fully reviewed by the government in 1997. That year Prime Minister Tony Blair visited the future grounds of the dome, spanning a full 180 acres, and gave his resounding approval of the project.

The dome was opened throughout 2000 for public celebrations and festivities, and closed on December 30. The dome project was not limited to millennium festivities. The Greenwich peninsula was a wasteland prior to the project implementation, heavily contaminated by gas emissions from a nearby plant. The aim of the investment was to preserve the environment and improve the surroundings here, to the extent that the peninsula could become a tourist destination once again.

The interior was organized as an exhibit centre, divided into 14 theme sectors. A large number of music shows, film projections and acrobatic performances ran throughout 2000, drawing visitors from all over the world. The British government actually endorsed a whole line of millennium projects. One of these was Gorix, which involved manufacturing of heat-conductive materials. Gorix manufactures gloves for NASA. Primal Pictures presented an interactive CD-ROM, an innovation in the field of computer animation featuring hands-on experience. Lotus Elise is a novelty in the automobile industry. The car is composed of innovative materials, such as a chassis made of aluminium and alloy break discs. The millennium project initiative was supported by giants like Ford, British Airways, JCB and Marks & Spencer, and featured a wide variety of sectors ranging from agriculture to entertainment. The Millennium product line was introduced in 1997.

Today the Dome is closed most of the time, but remains an attraction. It reopened in 2003 for the Winter Wonderland festivity, ending on a delightful note with New Year fireworks. It was used as a shelter for persons in distress around Christmastime in 2004. Recent plans involve transforming the dome to an indoor stadium for the 2012 Summer Olympics, set to take place in London. Other interesting attractions in the area include the Cutty Sark, the Royal Naval College, and the Thames Barrier, which is in proximity to London airport. You can visit the Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park, as well as the National Maritime Museum. Finally, be sure to see the Queens House. It is important for a number of reasons, one being that the White House was modelled on it.