Designed by Foster + Partners, for then owner Trafalgar House, the plan was for the building to be the tallest in Europe and the sixth-tallest in the world at that time, behind the twin Petronas Towers in Malaysia, the Sears Tower (now called the Willis Tower) in Chicago, and the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York. Its height was planned at 386 metres (1,266 ft), with 92 floors, which means it would have been 48th-tallest in the world as of 2023, and would be overtaken in Europe by the Federation Tower. A public viewing platform was planned for 1,000 ft (300 m) above ground level.
The scheme featured a highly unorthodox floor layout, essentially two asymmetrical ellipses joined at one end. When the plans were first unveiled in 1996, The Guardian newspaper coined the term "erotic gherkin",[2] a name that other outlets quickly adopted and which stuck even after the plan was superseded, eventually becoming 30 St Mary Axe, the name of a different skyscraper that stands on the site today.[3]
English Heritage had been one of the largest backers of the project until they withdrew their support, due to Heathrow Airport objecting to the disruption that such a tall building would have on their flight paths. The project was eventually cancelled and the site sold to Swiss Re, which created its headquarters, also designed by Foster + Partners.
