# The Ginormous New Shopping Centre at Shepherds Bush



## teuchter (Oct 27, 2008)

It opens this week.

http://uk.westfield.com/london/#

Nicely timed to coincide with the Global Financial Meltdown Crisis.

It claims to be the biggest in-town shopping centre in Europe. It will be interesting to see how it fares.

It's good to see one of these being built in town near public transport links, rather than next to a motorway somewhere, for once, I suppose.


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## ivebeenhigh (Oct 27, 2008)

my company is opening up in there this week.  I went last week and had a look around.  quite an impressive place.  not sure where the profit is coming from though.


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## Pip (Oct 27, 2008)

Lewisham's better.


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## Homeless Mal (Oct 27, 2008)

I like the naivity in them using real cutlery for the dining areas!


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## Kanda (Oct 27, 2008)

Homeless Mal said:


> I like the naivity in them using real cutlery for the dining areas!



Good! Am pissed off with wooden fucking knives!!


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## ivebeenhigh (Oct 27, 2008)

hopefully the opening works better than their website

http://uk.westfield.com/london/centre-information/sign-up.html


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## Ms T (Oct 27, 2008)

I'm quite pleased - somewhere to go during meal breaks, at last.  And the work canteen is going to take a kicking, which is good as it's overpriced and rubbish.


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 27, 2008)

I can't see the point to be honest. There's loads of shops in Hammersmith already, and actually there's no shortage of shops around the Green either. There doesn't seem to be anything particularly unusual there. And there's only one bookshop for heaven's sake - that's something the area _is_ lacking.


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## trashpony (Oct 27, 2008)

I was going to start a thread about this. An enormous shopping centre with an emphasis on high end brands which are largely bought by people with ridiculous disposable incomes. Err ...

I bet the backers are shitting themselves


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 27, 2008)

On the other hand, it'll be handy if there's a plague of zombies. As long as Louis Vuitton have a gun section.


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## rubbershoes (Oct 27, 2008)

blimey

the bush must have changed since i lived there


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 27, 2008)

Oh, also the quality of goods sold in pubs and bookies will go _way_ up now.


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## Dillinger4 (Oct 27, 2008)

Just out of interest, what was there before?


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## Bahnhof Strasse (Oct 27, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> Oh, also the quality of goods sold in pubs and bookies will go _way_ up now.























Does all seem to be shit that I'd never buy tho.


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## oryx (Oct 27, 2008)

Dillinger4 said:


> Just out of interest, what was there before?



I think it was the old White City, but people feel free to correct me if I'm wrong!


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## dodgepot (Oct 27, 2008)

ivebeenhigh said:


> my company is opening up in there this week.



so is mine. well, not "mine" but the company i work for. obviously.


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## Ms T (Oct 27, 2008)

Dillinger4 said:


> Just out of interest, what was there before?



Disused land I think.


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## Kanda (Oct 27, 2008)

Cool, somewhere undercover to shop


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 27, 2008)

Bahnhof Strasse said:


> Does all seem to be shit that I'd never buy tho.



Accessories peasant!


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## T & P (Oct 27, 2008)

The chosen location for this monstruosity does strike me as a bit bizarre. Such malls have never been my thing but I get the impression the core of their customers is made up of day trippers arriving by car (such as Bluewater in Essex). I can't see many people willing to drive there. It's a constant nightmare from whichever direction you're approaching.

And while 'smaller' malls like The Glades in Bromley or that other one in Kingston do very well out of walk-in customers, they benefit from being right in the middle of busy pedestrianised town centres. I'm not too familiar with this area but if memory serves the mall is partly surrounded by multi-lane roads and massive roundabouts. It's not going to attract many pedestrians who decide who walk in on impulse- there won't be that many walking past it.

So whether the numbers of shoppers arriving by tube or bus will be enough to sustain this thing remains to be seen.


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## teuchter (Oct 27, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> I can't see the point to be honest. There's loads of shops in Hammersmith already, and actually there's no shortage of shops around the Green either. There doesn't seem to be anything particularly unusual there. And there's only one bookshop for heaven's sake - that's something the area _is_ lacking.



I should think it's aiming to compete more with the likes of bluewater than local shopping areas.


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## editor (Oct 27, 2008)

Why does it have to be so fucking ugly?


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## jayeola (Oct 28, 2008)

i wonder if they allow hoodies?


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## tarannau (Oct 28, 2008)

editor said:


> Why does it have to be so fucking ugly?



To fit in with the charming surroundings of White City?


Distinctly underwhelmed by the prospect tbh. Biggest urban shopping destination in Europe? Who gives a sodding fig eh.


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## Rollem (Oct 28, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> I can't see the point to be honest. There's loads of shops in Hammersmith already, and actually there's no shortage of shops around the Green either. There doesn't seem to be anything particularly unusual there. And there's only one bookshop for heaven's sake - that's something the area _is_ lacking.



the shopping centre by the green has always been shit though, even as a kid i knew never to bother going there unless you wanted cheap jewellery from argos,  and everyone who lives in the area has always wanted something better. even after the 're-vamp' of it, it still lacked that certain something. it's sure to close down now westfield is here 

hammersmith i like, the mall was my stomping ground as a bored teenager. but thats bound to be effected somewhat too?

i do think many people will still go to hammersmith / ealing to shop, for the familiarity. this is gonna be a place people make a 'trip' to, like bluewater and lakeside etc. my mum lives 20mins from westfield and has no plans to go there as its "too big" 




Dillinger4 said:


> Just out of interest, what was there before?


warehouses, derelict buildings from a bygone age that should have been saved, disuessed land, the old "white city market" of a weekend, and car-parking facilites for QPR  

avoid shepherd's bush by road on match days, that all i can say!!!


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## 5t3IIa (Oct 28, 2008)

Has the station re-opened yet?


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 28, 2008)

The station's been open for a few weeks.


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## 5t3IIa (Oct 28, 2008)

Nicely


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## Kanda (Oct 28, 2008)

jayeola said:


> i wonder if they allow hoodies?



Nope.


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 28, 2008)

Rollem said:


> the shopping centre by the green has always been shit though, even as a kid i knew never to bother going there unless you wanted cheap jewellery from argos,  and everyone who lives in the area has always wanted something better. even after the 're-vamp' of it, it still lacked that certain something. it's sure to close down now westfield is here



If the Morrisons goes it'll definitely close down; there's really not much other reason to visit. I'm always amazed at how few actual _shops_ it has for a shopping centre. It'll probably still struggle on while that's there though.


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## Rollem (Oct 28, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> If the Morrisons goes it'll definitely close down; there's really not much other reason to visit. I'm always amazed at how few actual _shops_ it has for a shopping centre. It'll probably still struggle on while that's there though.



that's true, its always survived based on the supermarket inside, everything else has always just seemed a bit of an add on


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## dodgepot (Oct 28, 2008)

Pip said:


> Lewisham's better.



i went to lewisham for the first time on saturday. i loved it.


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## behemoth (Oct 29, 2008)

T & P said:


> The chosen location for this monstruosity does strike me as a bit bizarre. Such malls have never been my thing but I get the impression the core of their customers is made up of day trippers arriving by car (such as Bluewater in Essex). I can't see many people willing to drive there. It's a constant nightmare from whichever direction you're approaching.


Much as I hate Bluewater, almost everyone I know in the surrounding area uses it very regularly, despite frequent traffic nightmares.  Build it and they will come.


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## Bungle73 (Oct 29, 2008)

Bluewater's in Kent, not in Essex.  It's Lakeside that's in Essex.

Didn't they demolish the remains of the old Wood Lane station to build this shopping centre?


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## LadyLDN (Oct 29, 2008)

My brother-in-law has been working on that site with the construction etc... it looks alright on the inside from what he's said.

I know I'm going to head there at some point and check it out. Bluewater & Lakeside are almost impossible for me to get to (I don't drive) - but for the 2 times I've been to each place they've made my head hurt... too many shoppers & too much going on.


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## pogofish (Oct 29, 2008)

Bungle73 said:


> Didn't they demolish the remains of the old Wood Lane station to build this shopping centre?



Yes, although some of the former depot buildings have been retained & renovated.

A new Wood lane Station was supposed to be part of the scheme.  Anyone know if it happened?


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 29, 2008)

pogofish said:


> A new Wood lane Station was supposed to be part of the scheme.  Anyone know if it happened?



Yes, that's there on the H&C. I've never got off there though so I don't know what it's like. I think it's fairly titchy.


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## teuchter (Oct 29, 2008)

I'm interested to see how it looks inside as well, and generally how it measures up architecturally. 

Like it or not, shopping centres are one of the main types of really large-scale "public" buildings being built at the moment. You could argue that they are our equivalent of what the grand railway stations were to the Victorians. Or could be. It's a shame they are generally so bland and indistinguishable from one another.

It's not as if there aren't precedents for enclosed shopping arcades to be exciting spaces...







And we end up with stuff like this:


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## poster342002 (Oct 29, 2008)

My most recent ex - who was a fan of shopping centres and visited them for the sheer fun of it - would have fucking loved this.


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## quimcunx (Oct 29, 2008)

There is an architecture page on Westfield's website: 

http://uk.westfield.com/london/centre-information/architecture

Apparently,




> Westfield London adds a spectacular new landmark to the capital's skyline. Designed to convey the intriguing interplay between water and light, the most striking feature is the undulating glass roof, which is made up of thousands of solid and clear panels. These have been carefully positioned to maximise natural light as the sun moves throughout the day, creating a spacious, airy environment wherever you happen to be.


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## Ms T (Oct 29, 2008)

tarannau said:


> To fit in with the charming surroundings of White City?
> 
> 
> Distinctly underwhelmed by the prospect tbh. Biggest urban shopping destination in Europe? Who gives a sodding fig eh.



I think you'll find that thousands of BBC employees are rather excited at the prospect of something to do in their lunchbreaks.


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## teuchter (Oct 29, 2008)

quimcunx said:


> There is an architecture page on Westfield's website:
> 
> http://uk.westfield.com/london/centre-information/architecture





> Westfield London adds a spectacular new landmark to the capital's skyline.



I assume they mean the capital's skyline as viewed from ... immediately next to the Westfield Shopping Centre.


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## quimcunx (Oct 29, 2008)

One can only assume, yes.


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## ChrisFilter (Oct 29, 2008)

I'm gonna head along on Saturday. I have to check on some shit for work, but have a kind of morbid curiousity as to the spectacle. 

Probably lots of free shit being given out. Well, not probably, hopefully.

The food options look good, if nothing else.


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## LadyLDN (Oct 29, 2008)

ChrisFilter said:


> I'm gonna head along on Saturday. I have to check on some shit for work, but have a kind of morbid curiousity as to the spectacle.
> 
> Probably lots of free shit being given out. Well, not probably, hopefully.
> 
> The food options look good, if nothing else.



I can't imagine how busy it'll be this weekend... battle of the crowds!
Let us know what freebies you get if any... might be goodie-bag central


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## Dead Cat Bounce (Oct 29, 2008)

Ms T said:


> I think you'll find that thousands of BBC employees are rather excited at the prospect of something to do in their lunchbreaks.



Plus the prospect of the 10-15% discount at certain shops.


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## Stig (Oct 29, 2008)

Ms T said:


> I think you'll find that thousands of BBC employees are rather excited at the prospect of something to do in their lunchbreaks.



Having to do the central line past it every day, I was happy to have a morrisons at Shepherds bush where you could nip off the tube for 4 pints of milk on the way home.
I dread to think what I'll end up with on the way home now...


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 29, 2008)

I'll probably pop along for a look, during the week (fuck going there on a weekend) but I get the fear from this sort of place.


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## Oswaldtwistle (Oct 30, 2008)

teuchter said:


> I
> 
> It's not as if there aren't precedents for enclosed shopping arcades to be exciting spaces...



Where is that?


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## kyser_soze (Oct 30, 2008)

It actually looks pretty  up close...


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## i386 (Oct 30, 2008)

Oswaldtwistle said:


> Where is that?



I thought this should be the Arcade (or the Victoria?), Leeds. At least the arcade there is truly well built.


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## corporate whore (Oct 30, 2008)

^^^ Is in Milan. Gorgeous. 

As for the Bush thing - just one more reason not to go to that singularly grotty part of London, IMO.


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## trashpony (Oct 30, 2008)

I know it's owned by an American company and the name and brand are a franchise but does anyone else agree that the logo looks like a dodgy 70s Vegas casino?


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## Echo Base (Oct 30, 2008)

> I know it's owned by an American company



Westfield are Australian. I think.


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## trashpony (Oct 30, 2008)

Echo Base said:


> Westfield are Australian. I think.



Oops - thought they were US. Still a butt ugly logotype


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## kyser_soze (Oct 30, 2008)

WRysmile is getting quite excited about this. She feels at home in malls, they're a natural environment for her...


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## trashpony (Oct 30, 2008)

kyser_soze said:


> WRysmile is getting quite excited about this. She feels at home in malls, they're a natural environment for her...





It's going to be gridlock - there's only 4500 parking spaces apparently. There are 8000 at Brent Cross. I think they're being slightly unrealistic if they think most people will travel by public transport ...


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## Oswaldtwistle (Oct 30, 2008)

trashpony said:


> It's going to be gridlock - there's only 4500 parking spaces apparently. There are 8000 at Brent Cross. I think they're being slightly unrealistic if they think most people will travel by public transport ...



Interesting point. Unlike Brent Cross, parking won't be free, although it is around half the price of central London (with no congestion charge either)

http://uk.westfield.com/london/getting-there/london-car-parking


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## lang rabbie (Oct 30, 2008)

teuchter said:


> I'm interested to see how it looks inside as well, and generally how it measures up architecturally.
> 
> Like it or not, shopping centres are one of the main types of really large-scale "public" buildings being built at the moment. You could argue that they are our equivalent of what the grand railway stations were to the Victorians. Or could be. It's a shame they are generally so bland and indistinguishable from one another.
> 
> ...



At least the architecture at Westfield London aspires to something a bit better than the second picture (Braehead Centre at Renfrew in Scotland - which is a car based out of town location just off the M8 next to an IKEA.)

And, unlike the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuelle, there won't be a McDonalds!


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## corporate whore (Oct 30, 2008)

Was in Manchester last week, and was taken to the Trafford Centre. I've live in smaller towns. 






^^old photo, it's now much bigger  since they tagged a 'homewares' extension on. 

Places like this make me weep.


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## teuchter (Oct 30, 2008)

lang rabbie said:


> At least the architecture at Westfield London aspires to something a bit better than the second picture (Braehead Centre at Renfrew in Scotland - which is a car based out of town location just off the M8 next to an IKEA.)
> 
> And, unlike the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuelle, there won't be a McDonalds!



Let's hope the aspirations are matched by the reality.

From the pictures that I have seen, it does seem to have quite an interesting glass roof thingy going on. Whether or not there is anything more to it than that we'll have to wait and see.


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## nino_savatte (Oct 30, 2008)

I may have a look but I wonder what will become of the crappy shopping centre on Shepherds Bush Green (W12?). I reckon Westfield will be like some retail black hole, sucking in all shops around it. Habitat moved out of the King Street Mall in Hammersmith a few weeks ago to be replaced by a Sports World.


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## cybertect (Oct 30, 2008)

.


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## mincepie (Oct 30, 2008)

nino_savatte said:


> I may have a look but I wonder what will become of the crappy shopping centre on Shepherds Bush Green (W12?). I reckon Westfield will be like some retail black hole, sucking in all shops around it. Habitat moved out of the King Street Mall in Hammersmith a few weeks ago to be replaced by a Sports World.



Yeah, Ealing seems to be full of 'shut-shops,' it's a shame in a way....

The shopping centre on the green dosent seem to have much to its name besides a Weatherspoons, supermarket and a VUE cinema. Upstairs was pretty much empty as it is (Before Westfield opened).  Ealing cinema closed, so I guess that'll keep it standing for a while. Mind you Westfield might have a cinema for all I know???


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 30, 2008)

nino_savatte said:


> Habitat moved out of the King Street Mall in Hammersmith a few weeks ago to be replaced by a Sports World.



Oh, I was wondering about that - I saw it was closing. There's a Habitat in Westfield, I expect they couldn't manage two in the same area and Westfield was the more natural place. (I like Habitat, I'm unrelentingly middle class.)

I don't know, I think King Street Mall will survive, it has the Primark for a start. The centre on the south of the green, as I said further up, will survive for as long as there's a supermarket there tbh but only for that reason. That's the only reason it's still there at the moment, all of the other shops there are crap.


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## FridgeMagnet (Oct 30, 2008)

mincepie said:


> Yeah, Ealing seems to be full of 'shut-shops,' it's a shame in a way....
> 
> The shopping centre on the green dosent seem to have much to its name besides a Weatherspoons, supermarket and a VUE cinema. Upstairs was pretty much empty as it is (Before Westfield opened).  Ealing cinema closed, so I guess that'll keep it standing for a while. Mind you Westfield might have a cinema for all I know???


I don't think the cinema makes enough to keep a place open. It's number 2 after the Morrisons but it's a distant second.


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## Bungle73 (Oct 31, 2008)

mincepie said:


> Yeah, Ealing seems to be full of 'shut-shops,' it's a shame in a way....
> 
> The shopping centre on the green dosent seem to have much to its name besides a Weatherspoons, supermarket and a VUE cinema. Upstairs was pretty much empty as it is (Before Westfield opened).  Ealing cinema closed, so I guess that'll keep it standing for a while. Mind you Westfield might have a cinema for all I know???


You are correct in your assumption, there is a cinema at Westfield.


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## Ms T (Oct 31, 2008)

Bungle73 said:


> You are correct in your assumption, there is a cinema at Westfield.



It's not opening until next year though.


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## nino_savatte (Nov 1, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> Oh, I was wondering about that - I saw it was closing. There's a Habitat in Westfield, I expect they couldn't manage two in the same area and Westfield was the more natural place. (I like Habitat, I'm unrelentingly middle class.)
> 
> I don't know, I think King Street Mall will survive, it has the Primark for a start. The centre on the south of the green, as I said further up, will survive for as long as there's a supermarket there tbh but only for that reason. That's the only reason it's still there at the moment, all of the other shops there are crap.



Yep, that's why I mentioned Habitat: I was really disappointed that they closed their shop. Over the years I've noticed that Kings Mall has a ridiculous number of mobile phone shops move in. 

That Morrisons is the only place worth visiting in that shopping centre on Shepherds Bush Green, the rest of the shops, as you say, are crap.


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## nino_savatte (Nov 1, 2008)

mincepie said:


> Yeah, Ealing seems to be full of 'shut-shops,' it's a shame in a way....
> 
> The shopping centre on the green dosent seem to have much to its name besides a Weatherspoons, supermarket and a VUE cinema. Upstairs was pretty much empty as it is (Before Westfield opened).  Ealing cinema closed, so I guess that'll keep it standing for a while. Mind you Westfield might have a cinema for all I know???



Aye, it seems to be lacking in proper shops. Wasn't the VUE cinema formerly a car park?


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## Orang Utan (Nov 1, 2008)

My work is moving to White City next year sometime - can't wait to visit a vast empty memorial to rampant consumerism on my lunch break


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## Ms T (Nov 1, 2008)

Just went there in my lunch break, and found it slightly scary to be honest.  It is a shiny temple to consumerism at the moment - I wonder how long it will be before the SALE signs appear.


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## paolo (Nov 2, 2008)

Aswell as the lack of architectural vision teuchter highlights, why not also make a leap with the type of shops? If I was in charge (ho ho), I'd have little clusters of small units, at knock down rents, then let them to hand picked independents. Books, music, art, fashion, food etc. With a reasonable selection of unique shops, you'd draw customers that would otherwise never come, with no downside on trade from the typical mall-regular.

(Then again, I'd rather these things didn't exist at all. I like 'real' streets.)


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## Geri (Nov 2, 2008)

Ms T said:


> Just went there in my lunch break, and found it slightly scary to be honest.  It is a shiny temple to consumerism at the moment - I wonder how long it will be before the SALE signs appear.



Is it all inside? Does it feel claustrophobic, or not?


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## paolo (Nov 8, 2008)

I was at a loose end today so I popped along early evening.

I arrived at Wood Lane station. The Westfield web site proudly talks about it being the first new station on an existing tube line for 70 years. That maybe true, but there's little to shout about. No Jubilee Line grand architectural gestures here. The developers may have stumped up some cash for the station, but it looks like it was change they found down the side of the corporate sofa.

Arriving at the shopping centre itself, looking at the streams of people leaving, it was clear that the place was a hit with at least one group: teenagers. The Apple store was overrun with youngsters huddled around Macs and iPods and iPhones. All good natured enough, but probably a bit more budget limited than the shops would want. And it didn't look like the adults were spending much either. The place was heaving - to the point of being annoying - but the not inside the shops themselves. Noone struggling with a clutch of shopping bags.

Some of the food places looked liked they had great stuff - quite upmarket. But then you'd have to eat out in the open space of the mall. A bit like going for a classy meal where your table is in the middle of a bus station.

After struggling with the sparse signage, I finally found some loos. The women were having to queue. How do you build something which - surely - has to appeal to women at least as much, if not more, than men, then not provide enough women's loos? It was worse inside though... pools of urine on the floor, no paper towels, hand dryers all broken. And from the comments I heard outside, the piss-soaked floors thing had happened in the ladies too.

Some bits are mildly impressive, albeit purely in a simplistic scale way. The double height shops give it a some kind of visual impact, but overall there's very little charm or beauty. Which I guess was exactly what I expected.

A little bit of Birmingham has arrived in West London. I won't be going back.


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## teuchter (Nov 8, 2008)

^^ Not too dissimilar from my thoughts when I went to have a look last weekend.

I arrived by train on the newly designated "overground" line from Clapham Junction, at the new station which is functional but little more. Like you say, no Jubilee line type of attempt to create anything of any particular architectural merit. The same applies to the revamped Central Line Tube station just across the road.

As for the architecture of the shopping centre itself, they can forget about it being a "spectacular landmark" or whatever they claim on the website; it's really just any old shopping centre anywhere in the UK multiplied a couple of times in size. The wavy glass roof is there, and nice enough - although hardly a remarkable example of that kind of structure - but it's pretty much drowned out by the hyperactive jumble of everything crammed beneath it. The main atrium is mildy impressive but nothing special.

As for the exterior, it seems to turn its back on most of its surroundings (although it was dark while I was there so didn't get a proper look) and there are a few residential roads nearby which are a little surreal - rows of modest terraced houses lining a street that terminates at a massive 3 or 4 storey blank wall which is the side of Westfield.

It did seem to be busy though - I don't know how many people were just there to be nosy like me, or were actually buying stuff.


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## HackneyE9 (Nov 9, 2008)

paolo999 said:


> A little bit of Birmingham has arrived in West London. I won't be going back.



Most succinct description I have yet seen of Westfield.


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## teuchter (Nov 9, 2008)

Birmingham's arguably got a more interesting shopping centre than any in London...


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## Dillinger4 (Nov 9, 2008)

Yeh, but its in Birmingham.


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## paolo (Nov 9, 2008)

teuchter said:


> Birmingham's arguably got a more interesting shopping centre than any in London...



Kind of. That's Selfridges and it looks great. The main shopping centre stuff isn't any where near as impressive.


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## teuchter (Nov 9, 2008)

paolo999 said:


> Kind of. That's Selfridges and it looks great. The main shopping centre stuff isn't any where near as impressive.



Yeah I know. I was hoping no-one would pick up on that technicality. I was quite disappointed to find this out when I went to look at it.

There is quite a nice shopping centre that just opened recently in Cambridge though; much more civilised than the norm and it fits quite sympathetically right into the middle of the town:


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## skyscraper101 (Nov 9, 2008)

FridgeMagnet said:


> I don't think the cinema makes enough to keep a place open. It's number 2 after the Morrisons but it's a distant second.



I'm not sure that shopping centre will close. Morrisons is always pretty busy, Wetherspoons gets pretty packed too, and the cinema is pretty decent. As for places like JJB Sports and Argos - they don't exist in Westfield so its still a good bet if you're after cheap stores.

My take on Westfield though - as I'm an unemployed and living in Shepherds Bush I've been twice now for a laugh.

Once on opening day with a festival size crowd which was hell on earth. I arrived just in time for Boris Johnson to announce over the PA 'I now declare Westfield Open' - cheers. I left after getting annoyed with the crowds and failing to find anywhere giving away free stuff.

The second time was on Thurday morning. Much better. It was pretty quiet. No problem getting served in the shops. Yo Sushi (and many other restaurants) had zero customers and I spent a good hour sitting at the Nintendo DS exhibition stand where they had a chef demonstrating the cooking software on the DS and handing out free food. Bonus!


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## quimcunx (Nov 9, 2008)

teuchter said:


> As for the architecture of the shopping centre itself, they can forget about it being a "spectacular landmark" or whatever they claim on the website; it's really just any old shopping centre anywhere in the UK multiplied a couple of times in size. The wavy glass roof is there, and nice enough - although hardly a remarkable example of that kind of structure - but it's pretty much drowned out by the hyperactive jumble of everything crammed beneath it. The main atrium is mildy impressive but nothing special.




Did the undulating glass roof, made up of thousands of solid and clear panels, convey the intriguing interplay between water and light?


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## teuchter (Nov 9, 2008)

quimcunx said:


> Did the undulating glass roof, made up of thousands of solid and clear panels, convey the intriguing interplay between water and light?



But of course.


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## quimcunx (Nov 9, 2008)

Good.  Because I'm not going unless I am going to be intrigued by how reminiscent of water, light and the interplay between the two the undulating roof is.


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## paolo (Nov 9, 2008)

Now if they'd taken the roof idea, and swept it gloriously and organically right down, sloping and meandering, to ground level, it could have been a devastatingly brilliant. An almost alien-like splodge of a building. As it is, it's just a slightly fancy roof on an otherwise anonymous box. And unless you walk along and continously look up, it might as well not be there.


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## BEARBOT (Nov 9, 2008)

everytime i see pics of that selfridges in brum i think..yeah ive GOT to see that!
that is possibly the coolest looking building ive ever seen
is the interior 1/2 as interesting as the exterior?

as far as westfield goes..shame the design is boring..i doubt ill be going there anytime soon unless convinced to go by freinds.i do have some "girly" freinds.its all upmarket shops isnt it? im not too into window shopping..i only like practical shopping..and im not majorly into that as an activity IF they suddenly open the worlds largest poundland at westfield ill make the effort to go west


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## pinkmonkey (Nov 9, 2008)

I went on Thursday night.  My impressions.  Its rubbish if you want to buy anything other than mid to high priced clothing or pointless gadgets. I really don't think I'm their target customer at all.  I did go to buy clothes, so I guess it did its job.  It wasn't that busy when I went.  I found it confusing and I got lost.  There are barely any signs in there, no maps, they have these interative screens instead and there aren't enough of them.  The food court is so dimly lit you can't read the signage to see what the food outlets are selling (my God I sound like an old biddy!).  The food court is _really_ expensive - I spied a duck burger for £14!   Without fries!! 
According to Drapers Record, they report they did their sales targets for the first week so they are happy. 
I don't think I'll bother to go back, it's not for me, the West End has more choice.


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## nino_savatte (Nov 9, 2008)

pinkmonkey said:


> I went on Thursday night.  My impressions.  Its rubbish if you want to buy anything other than mid to high priced clothing or pointless gadgets. I really don't think I'm their target customer at all.  I did go to buy clothes, so I guess it did its job.  It wasn't that busy when I went. * I found it confusing and I got lost. * There are barely any signs in there, no maps, they have these interative screens instead and there aren't enough of them.  The food court is so dimly lit you can't read the signage to see what the food outlets are selling (my God I sound like an old biddy!).  The food court is _really_ expensive - I spied a duck burger for £14!   Without fries!!
> According to Drapers Record, they report they did their sales targets for the first week so they are happy.
> I don't think I'll bother to go back, it's not for me, the West End has more choice.



I agree...I also spent ages looking for a loo. The maps are very confusing to read.


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## FridgeMagnet (Nov 9, 2008)

Mind you, thinking about it, if I spill wine over my keyboard _again_ I can now pop down to the Apple Store there and buy a new one. Though I'll have to make sure to do that before 10pm.


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## trashpony (Nov 9, 2008)

Interesting to hear people's impressions. My nan's friend (who's 87) went last week and she said there was nowhere to sit down and she thinks Bluewater is better. Seems like it is aimed at the Notting Hill mob but I can't see it doing that well as the weeks go on, given the general slump in the High Street


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## HackneyE9 (Nov 9, 2008)

BEARBOT said:


> everytime i see pics of that selfridges in brum i think..yeah ive GOT to see that!
> that is possibly the coolest looking building ive ever seen
> is the interior 1/2 as interesting as the exterior?



The problem with the Selfridges building in Brum is it's situated right on a bunch of choked, polluted, scuzzy six lane roads (it is Brum, after all) rather than majestically all on its own somewhere.

And a dept store is a bit of a waste for such a great design, IMO.


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## Bungle73 (Nov 9, 2008)

paolo999 said:


> After struggling with the sparse signage, I finally found some loos. The women were having to queue. How do you build something which - surely - has to appeal to women at least as much, if not more, than men, then not provide enough women's loos? It was worse inside though... pools of urine on the floor, no paper towels, hand dryers all broken. And from the comments I heard outside, the piss-soaked floors thing had happened in the ladies too.


That's quite poor considering it's only just opened.  Mind you I try to avoid public toilets where ever possible.  They're always disgusting!  And no way would I sit on a public toilet seat!


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## pinkmonkey (Nov 9, 2008)

trashpony said:


> Interesting to hear people's impressions. My nan's friend (who's 87) went last week and she said there was nowhere to sit down and she thinks Bluewater is better. Seems like it is aimed at the Notting Hill mob but I can't see it doing that well as the weeks go on, given the general slump in the High Street



I actually don't mind Bluewater - In the past I've got the train out there on an evening and done all my xmas shopping in one go - it's open til ten weekdays as well and is pretty quiet after 8pm.  I couldn't imagine xmas shopping at Westfield unless I was going to buy everyone clothes.

Bluewater had this theory that you should never be more than 100 yards from a cup of coffee.  It's not like that in Westfield.  It took me blimmin' ages to find somewhere to have a sandwich that wasn't going to cost over a tenner.

Edited to add: shopping is so soul destroying.  Having done mine and feeling utterly rubbish, I think I've put my finger on it - shopping gives me the same feeling as a coke comedown used to.  Not nice.


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## FridgeMagnet (Nov 10, 2008)

I popped in to Westfield this evening after work, and I have to say that it wasn't quite the appalling experience that I'd feared. It's at least reasonably open inside, though, walking from Shepherds Bush central line, you do tend to think "where the fuck _is_ everything? how am I suppose to find what I want?" as there are no obvious maps or guides until you get past a certain point. You're much better coming in from the Wood Green end.

It is still weird though. It isn't a real place. _Everything is made out of shops_.


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## Artaxerxes (Nov 11, 2008)

Pip said:


> Lewisham's better.



That sense of imminent death is great, adds an edge to the shopping experience


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## Kanda (Nov 11, 2008)

trashpony said:


> Interesting to hear people's impressions. My nan's friend (who's 87) went last week and she said there was nowhere to sit down and she thinks Bluewater is better. Seems like it is aimed at the Notting Hill mob but I can't see it doing that well as the weeks go on, given the general slump in the High Street



One of the free London papers reported that since Westfield has opened, numbers on Oxford St etc are down 25%!!


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## skyscraper101 (Nov 11, 2008)

Given that it's a three minute walk from my house I rather pleased I no longer have to go to Oxford Street which is possibly the worst shopping experience ever imho. Also I like the atrium restaurant walk bit. It's outside but covered so you can get fresh air (or smoke) while eating and never get rained on.


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## Rollem (Nov 11, 2008)

well, having said she wasn't going to go because its 'too big', my mum has been and loved it  though she didn't like the layout in marks and spencers and was disgusted at their lack of teapots in their cafe


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## paolo (Nov 11, 2008)

Rollem said:


> well, having said she wasn't going to go because its 'too big', my mum has been and loved it  though she didn't like the layout in marks and spencers and was disgusted at their lack of teapots in their cafe


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## Rollem (Nov 11, 2008)

trashpony said:


> Seems like it is aimed at the Notting Hill mob but I can't see it doing that well as the weeks go on, given the general slump in the High Street



do you think? i'd say its just not aimed at 87 year olds, in fairness. not to say they shouldn't go of course! i reckon it will do just fine, just all the nearby high streets (hammersmith, ealing) that will suffer


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## Oswaldtwistle (Nov 11, 2008)

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/stand...ails/Westfield's+weekend+rush-hour/article.do

So much for public transport!


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## blossie33 (Nov 11, 2008)

HackneyE9 said:


> The problem with the Selfridges building in Brum is it's situated right on a bunch of choked, polluted, scuzzy six lane roads (it is Brum, after all) rather than majestically all on its own somewhere.
> 
> And a dept store is a bit of a waste for such a great design, IMO.



Sorry to disagree but your comment about the roads around Selfridges is a bit exaggerated, that's only on the Digbeth side and it's not that bad, the rest is bordered by the St Martins-in-the-Bull Ring church area which has been cleaned up and looks really good.

Also, there are far more choked and polluted roads in London than there are in Brum!


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## iskande (Nov 11, 2008)

Oswaldtwistle said:


> http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/stand...ails/Westfield's+weekend+rush-hour/article.do
> 
> So much for public transport!



heh . on sunday there was free parking as there was a problem with some credit card readers.


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## pinkmonkey (Nov 11, 2008)

Rollem said:


> well, having said she wasn't going to go because its 'too big', my mum has been and loved it  though she didn't like the layout in marks and spencers and was disgusted at their lack of teapots in their cafe



I love mums -they are ace.  When Harvey Nicks opened in Leeds everyones mum was in there in their best cardi, queuing up to buy identical Harvey Nichols tea caddies.


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## trashpony (Nov 11, 2008)

Rollem said:


> do you think? i'd say its just not aimed at 87 year olds, in fairness. not to say they shouldn't go of course! i reckon it will do just fine, just all the nearby high streets (hammersmith, ealing) that will suffer


I dunno really, haven't been. But I do think a lack of seating is going to exclude a certain amount of the population - old ladies and people with small kids. I shall have to go and have a look (after xmas and after sales so sometime in Feb )


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## Homeless Mal (Nov 11, 2008)

I went on the weekend and it's impressive but have seen similar shopping centres in Australia where Westfield is big.  I would choose the West End over this though, as the West End is more of a shopping experience.

Do look forward to the scrummaging come sales time.  There could be some nasty falls on the escalators, but at least there's no benches to hinder your stride.


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## Cloo (Nov 12, 2008)

Going there with my mum and her mate next week to spend some of my birthday money! Malls tend to be better for my mum than high streets because of her ME... she's found Bluewater very good. She said it was suprisingly hard to find info about Shopmobility at Westfield, which is unsual, as most new malls are pretty good at prioritising it, so I hope this place is as good as Bluewater, which has lots of lifts and wide aisles for shopmobility buggies (although in our experience those go to pot before Xmas as everyone crams their shops full of stock).


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## HackneyE9 (Nov 14, 2008)

blossie33 said:


> Sorry to disagree but your comment about the roads around Selfridges is a bit exaggerated, that's only on the Digbeth side and it's not that bad, the rest is bordered by the St Martins-in-the-Bull Ring church area which has been cleaned up and looks really good.
> 
> Also, there are far more choked and polluted roads in London than there are in Brum!



Yeah, but that's the main side everyone takes the photos of the building from!


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## Cloo (Nov 19, 2008)

Well, went there yesterday. Confusing and expensive car parking aside (and they still charge disabled people the full whack, which seems a mite unfair, as it's not as if they have much choice about driving), a very good experience.

The designer-y bit is a rather sexy bit of design, though half of the shops there aren't open yet. I don't know if it can attract the shoppers they need. I do know some people who shop at that end of the spectrum and they tend to abhor malls, but I'm wondering if it's intended to aim more at the kind of people who can't really afford those places, but like to splash out using credit. In which case, they're pretty fucked because those are just the kind of people who are realising they can't spend like that any more.

Full marks for parent/baby facilities - big, clean, lots of rooms and cubicles, and even double loos for parents with kids who need some help. 

And also good layout for mum getting around on her mobility scooter. The natural light and atmosphere controls were also good, so she didn't feel ill after 20 minutes as she does in some older malls.

There's also a slightly more unusual range of shops there, which I think was meant to be one of their USPs, but one can only imagine all those stores will proliferate elsewhere in time, making that less of an special attraction.

I liked the electronic mall maps that allowed you to look places up and gave directions in 'girl' - ie, 'Past Nike, past Topshop, turn left, past Zara'


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## teuchter (Jan 6, 2009)

Iain Sinclair goes to Westfield, then writes lots of words:

http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/...in_sinclair_on_westfield_shopping_centre.html


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## Hellsbells (Jan 6, 2009)

I went there before christmas & have to say that i'll never be doing my shopping in the west end again! I thought it was great. 

Having lots of free, clean, swanky toilets is a huge huge plus. It's so hard to find free toilets these days. And I love all the comfy chairs and sofas - so you can sit down and relax without having to actually buy food/drink for the 'privilege'. 

The food bars there are quite amazing - but not cheap. 

Pretty much all the high street shops and department stores you could wish for.


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## kyser_soze (Jan 6, 2009)

teuchter said:


> Iain Sinclair goes to Westfield, then writes lots of words:
> 
> http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/...in_sinclair_on_westfield_shopping_centre.html



You'd have thought he could be bothered to research the place:



> ...has named itself with a stab-inthe-dark at heritage. A beacon statement and a portal to London's unplucked west of old suburbs; dormitory clusters.



Yeah...named after the Aussie company that own and built the thing, and who are also building the Olympic stuff...has nothing to do with it being in West London.

However, having hauled myself through the rest of his overblown prose, I'm not greatly surprised. Does Izzy Allen still edit the AJ? I remember when she was a freelance staff writer when Paul Finch was the Ed, and he'd never have allowed such a pseuds paradise of an article to infect the pages of the AJ - hell, even at his worst, Peter davey on the AR wouldn't have allowed drivel like this.

It is always funny tho, reading the words of someone 'cultured' experiencing the kind of shopping that a huge swathe of the population do once a month or more...


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## teuchter (Jan 6, 2009)

The AJ is currently edited by Kieran Long. He's a fairly young fellow. I actually met him once or twice some time ago through curious circumstances. 

I'm glad I'm not the only one who found that article somewhat pseuds' corner. It somehow manages to make several rather obvious points in an entirely unnecessarily pretentious way. It lives up to many people's stereotype of architects disconnected from most folks experience of the built world. Except he's not even an architect.


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## Brainaddict (Jan 6, 2009)

kyser_soze said:


> You'd have thought he could be bothered to research the place:
> 
> Yeah...named after the Aussie company that own and built the thing, and who are also building the Olympic stuff...has nothing to do with it being in West London.



No, read it again  He says 'sounds like' - and the rest of what he writes shows that he knows it's the brand name.

But I won't argue with the fact that Iain Sinclair is one of the most pretentious people on earth. I recently started London Orbital and found it fascinating at first, until he started talking about art  My god, if he knew what a twat he can sound like he would probably consider a change of career to Westfield's PR chief, just to increase his levels of dignity and self-respect.

Also, that piece is pretty much shooting generically at all shopping malls, not at Westfields in particular. Not particularly interesting cos its all been said before.


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## Brainaddict (Jan 6, 2009)

teuchter said:


> The AJ is currently edited by Kieran Long.


Ginger guy? I think he used to be my neighbour in Brixton. When I met him and heard what his job was I started talking about how arrogant 'successful' architects couldn't give a toss what people want from buildings. He was never too friendly after that  

He also didn't like parties, so is a loser


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## mhwfc (Jan 8, 2009)

teuchter said:


> ^^ Not too dissimilar from my thoughts when I went to have a look last weekend.
> 
> I arrived by train on the newly designated "overground" line from Clapham Junction, at the new station which is functional but little more. Like you say, no Jubilee line type of attempt to create anything of any particular architectural merit. The same applies to the revamped Central Line Tube station just across the road.



IIRC the Shepherds Bush overground station on the West London Line was paid for by Westfield? The place doesn't even have a roof over the platforms, excellent logic from the developers, come to Westfield and do all your shopping under one roof, then get wet waiting for the train home


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## teuchter (Jan 16, 2009)

I went past Westfield the other day ... I think this photo illustrates the sensitive and thoughtful way the building has been incorporated into its surroundings:







Someone obviously spent a lot of time tweaking the facade facing the residential streets until it was just right. Well done!


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## kyser_soze (Jan 16, 2009)

teuchter said:


> The AJ is currently edited by Kieran Long. He's a fairly young fellow. I actually met him once or twice some time ago through curious circumstances.
> 
> I'm glad I'm not the only one who found that article somewhat pseuds' corner. It somehow manages to make several rather obvious points in an entirely unnecessarily pretentious way. It lives up to many people's stereotype of architects disconnected from most folks experience of the built world. Except he's not even an architect.



When I was working at Emap Construct on the AJ and AR, there were more architects on the ad sales teams than journalism staffers. IIRC, Paul Finch, Peter Davey and one other writer were actually qualified architects, the rest were design types with a strong interest in architecture...it made one of the building studies fun - I remember Finchy yelling across the office about some massive fuck up the writer had made about materials use on a house extension somewhere...


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## butterfly child (Jan 17, 2009)

Rollem said:


> do you think? i'd say its just not aimed at 87 year olds, in fairness. not to say they shouldn't go of course! i reckon it will do just fine, just all the nearby high streets (hammersmith, ealing) that will suffer



Ealing is pretty shit, so it won't make much difference.

Hammersmith is pretty damn grotty too.


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## quimcunx (Feb 1, 2009)

Well I went today to see the London Through a Lens exhibition but had a look round a couple of shops too, seeing as I was there.  Can't say I was overwhelmed by the architecture.  The glass roof didn't impress me.  I wasn't reminded of water.  Maybe from a technical point of view it is more impressive.  I thought it wasn't too bad for non-cafe seating.  Don't remember seeing any toilets, though I'm sure there are some.  There was an okay woody slatty bit that was welcome relief from the bland creamy greyishness glassyness that is every new shopping mall. 

That said it was certainly more pleasant than Oxford Street had been half an hour earlier. Much more space.  I'd go again if I was needing a shopping fix, which I very rarely do.  

And I got some lovely Barbapapa plastic crockery, a coat hook and some shoes.   

The photo exhibitions was quite interesting too.


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## brix (Feb 1, 2009)

teuchter said:


> I went past Westfield the other day ... I think this photo illustrates the sensitive and thoughtful way the building has been incorporated into its surroundings:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Oh my word, that's an ugly building.  (((poor people in nice terraced houses that have to look at it)))


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