The Millennium Dome, often referred to simply as The Dome, is the original name of a large dome-shaped building, originally used to house the Millennium Experience, a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium. Located on the Greenwich Peninsula in South East London, England, the exhibition opened to the public on 1 January 2000 and ran until 31 December 2000. The project and exhibition was the subject of considerable political controversy as it failed to attract the number of visitors anticipated, leading to recurring financial problems.

While all of the original exhibition and associated complex has since been demolished, the canopy or shell of the dome still exists, and it is now a key exterior feature of the The O₂ entertainment district.

The Prime Meridian passes the western edge of the Dome. The nearest London Underground station is North Greenwich on the Jubilee Line.

This Building was created by the architect Richard Rogers. the structure is prasented as a big dome, with a circumference of ore kilometres, and it has an height of fifty metres. The centre of the structure puts up a big arena where at beginning it was thought as an open air place but now it is covered with teflon and fibreglass.The building was financed by the national lottery and in part anso by privates sponsor, but, after a year the Dome welcomed only a little part of visitors that they had waited. For this reason it will destroy soon.

In the Dome, there are 14 different areas , that correspond to the 14 cultural aims that Tony Blair indicated near the circumference but only at the centre we can see a space occupated by shows and concerts. there are a mind zone, rest zone and journey zone, where in every part of this structure there is a particular characteristic, for exemple, the rest zone is created for relaxing.

Today this buildin is characterized by a cinema, music club, bar, restaurant and exhibition area, there are important aspects for the riqualification of the Greenwich peninsula.

THE MILLENNIUM DOME

It has nothing to do with a spacecraft, it’s about the world’s largest indoor structure, the enormous Millennium Dome, a copula located in Greenwich in South East London, by the Thames Rivers’ banks.

It was achieved by the architect Richard Rogers and it was financed by the national lottery as well as by other private authorities.

This important structure was carried out in a very short length of time (from 1997 to 1999) in order to celebrate the incoming third millennium.

The structure occupies about more then 150 acres. The Millennium Dome,or simply Dome, is spread out on a covered surface of about 1000 square meters, it is 50 m high and the whole structure is supported by huge steel poles 100 meters high. On the inside, for a volume of 2,1 million cubic m , there are 14 displayed areas. The place used to be an ex industrial port that turned out to be completely degraded and polluted.

Not able to attract the expected number of visitors, after a long period of crisis, the Millenium Dome was closed down for long periods of time, it reopened only occasionally when there were special events, until May 21 2005 when the phone company O2 acquired this great but unused structure.

It then became accessible in 2007, it was named 02 and was used as a recreational area, with an indoor cinema, bar, many restaurants, discos and displayed areas.

Directions for the Millennium Dome:

Metro Jubelee line, North Greenwich Stop

Train to London Bridge, Charing Cross, Waterloo East or Cannon Street.

MARIA FRANCESCA SCHISA