British Land has had revolutionary designs prepared for a new multi-million pound office building which it hopes to develop on a site among the cluster of towers in the City of London. The previous project to develop the site went stale when it was halted in 2012.

British Land's design will rise to 240m high (16 metres taller than the neighbouring Leadenhall Building, a British Land joint venture project with Oxford Properties). Taking a tall, slender, yet somehow familiar form, the building will incorporate the latest in sustainable technology including a photovoltaic crust and has already been dubbed 'The Slice of Bread' by architectural critic Flora Spoil.

The new addition echoes Mayor of London Boris Johnson's remark that Central London is beginning to resemble `The Ploughman's Lunch', with a Cheesegrater, Can of Ham and the Gherkin.

Chris Grigg, Chief Executive, British Land, commented: "Obviously we are still in the proofing stage, but we think this would be an excellent site for the building, sandwiched between our own Cheesegrater and the Gherkin and in very close proximity to the proposed Toast Rack at 40 Leadenhall Street.

"London real estate is on a roll and we're pleased to be looking at an even bigger slice of the action when it comes to premium buildings in London."

M. Brioche & Rye, architectural consultants to the project, said: "This is just what London has been kneading - a beautiful building rising up as a glowing tribute to the City. The design is aspirational, yet recognising its location between the Gherkin and Cheesegrater, carefully develops the interplay between the vegetable and functional".

Enquiries:
Media
Pip Wood, British Land 020 7467 2838
Giles Barrie, FTI Consulting 020 3727 1042
Andrew Scorgie, FTI Consulting 020 3727 1458
Investor Relations
Sally Jones, British Land 020 7467 2942

About British Land
British Land is one of Europe's largest Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). Through our property and finance expertise we attract experienced partners to create properties and environments which are home to over 1,000 different organisations and receive over 300 million visits each year. Our property portfolio is focused on the UK, in prime retail locations and London offices which attract high quality occupiers committed to long leases. We have total assets in the UK, owned or managed, of £17.1 billion (British Land share £11.2 billion), as valued at 30 September 2013. Our occupancy rate of 97% and average lease length to first break of 11 years are among the highest of the major UK REITs.

UK retail assets account for 59% of our portfolio, around 80% of which are located at prime out of town sites. Comprising around 25 million sq ft of retail space across 69 retail parks, 89 superstores, 17 shopping centres and 13 department stores and 77 leisure assets, the retail portfolio is modern, flexible and adaptable to a wide range of formats. Our active asset management delivers space which is attractive and meets the needs of both retailers and consumers. London offices, located in the City and West End, comprise 39% of the portfolio, which will rise to an estimated 41% on completion of current committed developments. Our 7 million sq ft of high quality office space includes Regent's Place and Paddington Central in the West End and Broadgate, the premier City office campus (50% share). Our size and substance demands a responsible approach to business. We believe leadership on issues such as sustainability helps drive our performance and is core to the delivery of our overall objective of driving shareholder value.

Further details can be found on the British Land website at www.britishland.com

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