Making memories are what summer socials are all about.
As the mercury climbs, the great outdoors provides an ideal change of scene from the office or the home – a backdrop to shared experiences.
For those seeking something just that little bit different, Skuna’s BBQ Boats are all set for 2025’s summer months.
Based at West India Quay, these self-drive electric craft come with built-in BBQs offering Wharfers “an unforgettable way to eat, drink and spend time with others”.
BBQ Boats hold up to 10 people, with cruises lasting 100 minutes
BBQ Boats offer 100-minute cruises
The experience begins with a quick briefing before guests take the helm for 100 minutes of cooking and relaxing on the tranquil waters of North Dock.
Each boat holds up to 10 people, who can either bring their own food to grill or pre-order from Skuna’s freshly prepared food packages.
Drinks can be purchased from the on-site bar, which also sells captains hats for those who want to take a turn at the tiller.
“Our BBQ Boats offer the perfect dining on the water experience for summer,” said Stuart ‘Tommo’ Thomson, founder of Skuna.
“They are great for team bonding experience as you cook and sail yourself around the beautiful docks of Canary Wharf.
“This is a world away from the ordinary BBQ in the park or back garden – it’s summer dining, but not as you know it – and a bucket list activity to enjoy with friends and colleagues alike.”
The craft are a popular option for summer parties in Canary Wharf
key details: Skuna BBQ Boats
Skuna’s BBQ Boats are available during the summer months from their home on West India Quay.
Prices and details of the various food packages available can all be found on Skuna’s website, as well as booking links for its Sauna Boat and Hot Tub Boat experiences – also based in Canary Wharf.
The early season sunshine has already started making an appearance across Canary Wharf, with pleasant evenings tempting workers, residents and visitors to the area outside.
The time of summer socials is almost upon us, with the smart and the organised already beginning to consult diaries, form plans and make bookings.
With whole businesses, teams and small groups of colleagues all looking to capitalise on the clement weather ahead, it’s best to secure key dates early, especially at the estate’s top spots.
Having arrived in the vanguard of the area’s regeneration Hawksmoor Wood Wharf quickly established itself in the upper echelons of the estate’s hospitality scene.
Both have terraces for guests to enjoy dining or refreshment in the open air.
Wood Wharf is the brand’s largest venue and, moored at the head of Water Street, acts as a gateway to a part of the estate that’s become well known for drinking and dining in recent years.
Oysters with bone marrow at Hawksmoor
just ‘a little unexpected’
Hawksmoor says: “Our Wood Wharf venue isn’t about reinventing the wheel.
“It’s about doing things properly: sustainable food, an award-winning cocktail menu and genuine service – all delivered in a space that feels considered, open, and just a little unexpected.”
Those planning seasonal events can look forward to a solid offering menu-wise.
Hawksmoor has long specialised in “dictionary-thick steaks”, chicken dishes and seafood such as lobster, monkfish, hake and Dover sole.
The cooking is big, bold and honed by the team over many years to reflect the quality of the sustainably sourced ingredients.
Crowd-pleasing sides such as Tunworth mash, macaroni cheese and beef dripping fries sit happily on a menu next to starters such as potted beef and bacon, smoked salmon with Guinness bread, roasted scallops and oysters.
>> Hawksmoor Wood Wharf boasts a 20-seat dining room for guests or businesses hosting private gatherings.
It’s fully equipped for presentations and groups of 34+ can take a semi-private space with a dedicated waiting team and sommelier to ensure guests are effectively refreshed.
To make planning easy, Hawksmoor offers both a canapé menu, with bites inspired by the flavours on its main menu as well as bowl food options for those seeking something more substantial.
Bite-size desserts can also be arranged to send guests away with a sweet taste in their mouths.
The Queenie Watts private dining room at Hawksmoor Wood Wharf
key details: Hawksmoor Wood Wharf
Hawksmoor Wood Wharf is located on a floating pontoon beside Water Street and is open from 11.45am-11pm, Monday-Thursday, 11.45am-11.30pm Friday and Saturday and 11.30am-8.30pm on Sundays.
At weekends, the venue offers extensive traditional roast options.
Event enquiries can be made online for all of the venue’s spaces or via email to woodwharf@thehawksmoor.com.
The largest creatures on Earth have inspired countless works of art and fiction, often used to draw attention to matters of importance.
In the Hebrew scriptures, Jonah finds redemption in the belly of a great sea creature, having turned back to a righteous path.
There’s Moby Dick and Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan too, but we needn’t get bogged down with revenge, obsession and highfalutin social philosophy.
More recently, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home saw Captain Kirk and crew forced to time travel back to 1986 on the silver screen to pick up a pair of humpback whales, thereby averting ecological disaster after an alien probe comes seeking the ocean giants, only to find them extinct in 2286.
That’s almost as far-fetched as everyone running around with hand-held communication devices and tablet computers…
Recently unveiled on Water Street, Whale On The Wharf, then, belongs to that proud tradition of leveraging the largest animal on the planet as a lodestone for attention and it’s exactly what StudioKCA’s intallation does.
Leaping from the waters of the dock close to Marceline and Dishoom, the 12-metre high sculpture successfully breaches the consciousness of passers-by.
StudioKCA have also created similar pieces in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and in Bruges, Belgium.
The whale’s skin is made from plastic waste reclaimed from the ocean – image by Jon Massey
the story Whale On The Wharf tells
“We’re telling the story of how we live, what we use, where it ends up and what we should do about it,” said Jason Klimoski, who along with his wife Lesley Chang run the Brooklyn-based art and design studio that created the piece.
“It’s about the 150million tonnes of plastic in the ocean and the 8million we add to that each year.
“A lot of that is hidden, so bringing some of it here hopefully helps people visualise it.
“The plastic used in Whale On The Wharf comes from the Pacific and the Atlantic. We worked with the Hawaii Wildlife Fund to collect about five tonnes of plastic.
“We cleaned it, organised it by how long it had been in the water, sorted it by colour and cleaned it piece by piece.
“We chose to make a whale because, pound-for-pound, the plastic in the ocean weighs more than the total of all the whales on the planet.
“We thought it would be the perfect metaphor to help people understand the scale of the problem.”
The sculpture is supported on a recylced steel frame and concrete foundations made with biochar from spent coffee grounds collected from Canary Wharf – image by Jon Massey
a sustainable foundation for Whale On The Wharf
While the leaping creature is the public-facing portion of the work, Whale On The Wharf is also a creation of significant depth.
Canary Wharf Group’s commission is about a lot more than adding to its extensive public art collection.
Wharfers sipping coffee on the estate and then discarding their cups in its waste bins have contributed to its construction.
The sculpture sits on a foundation of concrete made with biochar, a material that replaces sand in the mix and is made from those discarded grounds.
This also prevents CO2 being released when the coffee breaks down and reduces demand for the extraction of traditional raw resources from the Earth.
“We understand the power that art holds,” said Sophie Goddard, director of environment, social and governance at Canary Wharf Group.
“It can provoke emotion and it can create change.
“With this project we’ve really pushed the boundaries of what can be achieved.
“We thought about how we can take the principles of the circular economy and push those forward.
“We’ve locked up spent coffee in the foundation and we’ve been able to do that through the efforts of our in-house waste management team.
“They hand-sort the rubbish that goes into our bins and their work means we’ve sent no waste to landfill since 2009.”
Whale On The Wharf is free to visit and stands 12 metres tall – image by Jon Massey
a strong steel core
On top of the concrete, Whale On The Wharf is supported by a braced steel structure made from recovered and reused steel to further reduce its environmental impact.
Jason said: “Inside the sculpture there’s a steel spine that supports the structure and aluminium armature to make the shape of the whale.
“Onto that we attached each of the pieces of plastic using steel ties and screws.
“We really want people to see the things they use every day, to recognise them and then wonder what happens to them. How did the things that make up this sculpture get here? What was their journey?
“There’s a car bumper, a kid’s toilet. It’s really the items that relate to children I find both funny and sad.
“Hopefully there’ll be a conversation at home after, especially with the kids, about how we use plastic and what we do with it afterwards.
“When we were building it, we were focussed on the scale of the issue, not necessarily on the thing itself.
“We have a son and so we have to think about the stuff we buy him and what will happen to it.”
Now Canary Wharf has both a head-turning artwork and also a constant reminder of the consequences of unbridled consumption on our planet.
As well as its role in drawing attention to environmental issues, the installation is a significant addition to the estate’s sculpture collection – the largest publicly accessible collection of outdoor works in the UK.
“The whales is a landmark, it’s visually stunning and it really stops people in their tracks,” said Lowri Harries, associate curator of public art at Canary Wharf Group.
“That’s exactly what we want. Since our initial call with Jason, the installation has involved pretty much every part of our business.
“Construction, development, sustainability, marketing and communications as well as all the external contractors that have worked on the project.
“It’s taken a village to make this happen and we’re really thankful to everyone involved.”
An Ode To Never Fitting In, 2024, by Ashley Cluer is seen at Refuse in Broadwick Studio – image by Jon Massey
Visitors can expect to see a selection of sculptures including a vast chain made from medicine blister packs and vibrant lime green shapes made from cement, newspaper and recycled wood.
Free to access, the exhibition is on display at Broadwick Studio.
Perhaps when prompted by all these signs, we might take more notice of the way we’re living as a species and even avoid alien annihilation in the future.
PS, at Wharf Life we’re calling the Whale Bruce. You didn’t hear it from us…
key details: Whale On The Wharf
Whale On The Wharf is located on the corner of Water Street and Park Drive in Canary Wharf’s Wood Wharf. The installation is free to visit.
Refuse is in place until April 26, 2025, and is open from 10am-6pm on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at Broadwick Studio on the corner of Water Street and Charter Street in Wood Wharf.
It’s only the return of the London Craft Beer Festival, back in the capital, but this year in a completely new location
where’s that then?
For 2025, the event has moved to Magazine on Greenwich Peninsula, just across the Thames from Canary Wharf.
when’s it taking place?
Visitors to the festival are invited to survey and sample its delights from July 18-19, 2025, with afternoon and evening sessions on both days.
These last for five hours from 11.30am-4.30pm and 6pm-11pm on both the Friday and Saturday.
so what’s on offer?
Tickets of all types include all beer (and the occasional craft cider), with more than 800 different brews on offer presented by over 100 breweries.
whet my whistle…
The list is extensive, but the festival will include a strong showing from some of London’s celebrated brewers including DEYA (voted top at last year’s inaugural Top 50 UK Beers awards), Verdant and Tiny Rebel.
There will be international visitors too with beers from the USA, Europe and Australasia including New Zealand’s Garage Project new for this year.
what if I don’t like beer?
Fear not, cider, sake, spirits and more will also be available for those who prefer alternative refreshments.
There will be lots of food traders at the event alongside breweries – image by London Craft Beer Festival
dine at the London Craft Beer Festival
will we starve?
Certainly not.
To help soak up the beer, the festival will be serving up ramen from Bone Daddies, chicken from Chick N’ Sours, BBQ courtesy of From The Ashes, burgers by Meltdown Cheeseburgers and seasonal dishes from 10 Greek Street.
More food traders will be announced in due course.
and the dancing?
Promising to keep the party pumping, a programme of DJs, live music and other entertainments is planned.
how best to attend?
There are a number of ticket options for visitors to choose from.
Standard tickets cost £64.50 per person (did we mention every ticket type includes all beer and cider?).
Group tickets for four people cost £59.50 per person.
There are also options for fast-track entry and hospitality packages for larger groups.
how do I get there?
Magazine London isn’t a publication, but a purpose-built event venue, clad in black, right beside the river.
It’s located on Greenwich Peninsula, a short walk from North Greenwich Tube station, which is served by the Jubilee line and numerous bus routes.
Visitors can also travel to North Greenwich Pier on the Uber Boat By Thames Clippers River Bus service or from Royal Docks to the Peninsula via the Thames Cable Car.
The event is perfect for summer parties with larger groups – image by London Craft Beer Festival
summer special
>> For groups of eight or more, the festival offers Group Hospitality Tickets
Alongside all beer and cider, these also include fast track entry, a main dish and side per person from the food traders, two vouchers for non-beer drinks (think cocktails and spirits), a guided festival tour with a beer sommelier on arrival and a dedicated meeting point and host for your group.
Tickets cost £105 per person including VAT. Ideal for a summer celebration.
Maya Jaggi has spent much of her career making space for international writers in the UK.
After studying PPE at Oxford and international relations at LSE, she began her journalistic career in current affairs.
“I was in my 20s and it was a fairly academic journal, but I started a literature section,” she said. “Whenever I was doing anything about international politics, I was always thinking about where the cultural aspects were.
“They always make everything so much richer – history, memory and imagination are the building blocks of fiction – and that’s something that gets left out.”
It was a niche she explored in greater depth through her extensive work at The Guardian, reviewing novels by overseas authors and interviewing a great many for the publication.
The EBRD is owned by some 77 shareholders – namely countries spread across 5 continents as well as the EU and the European Investment Bank.
Set up in the wake of the fall of the Berlin Wall, it supports primarily private sector enterprise in democratic states, helping foster the transition to open market systems in those territories.
While initially it was set up to support eastern European countries in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse, its work has since broadened and spread to more than 30 nations over three continents, with €210 billion invested in more than 7,400 projects.
In 2022, it moved its headquarters to 5 Bank Street in Canary Wharf.
A shortlist of 10 books has now been unveiled ahead of the announcement of the winner in June – image by Ale Di Padova/EBRD
Now in its eighth iteration, publishers are invited to submit works of fiction that have been translated into English from countries where the institution invests.
A panel of judges then goes through these, producing a shortlist before three finalists are revealed.
The overall winning author and translator split a prize of €20,000 equally between them, while the other two finalists split awards of €4,000.
For 2025, the prizes will be awarded on June 24 at EBRD’s Canary Wharf offices.
Maya Jaggi, chair of the judges for the 2025 prize – image by Jon Massey
who decides?
The bank invites a panel of independent judges to pick both the shortlist and the finalists.
This year Maya has been joined by writer and editor Selma Dabbagh, translator and associate professor in Ukrainian and East European culture at UCL, Uilleam Blacker and writer and foreign correspondent for BBC News, Fergal Keane.
“I was invited to be a judge two years ago, so this is my third stint and, as chair, I get to suggest people to be on the panel, which has been a great pleasure,” said Maya.
“What I wanted were good readers, experienced readers and that’s what we have.
“There’s no long list and we don’t disclose how many submissions we’ve had for the prize, although they have been growing year-on-year and 2025 has been a bumper crop.
“All of the books go to each of the judges and we’ve been in contact with one another since December, discussing them.”
The EBRD Literature Prize judging panel hard at work – image by Ale Di Padova/EBRD
standing apart
“This is not a prize for literary translation, it’s a prize for the book,” said Maya.
“The author and translator are equally rewarded in recognition for their contribution to the work as published in English.
“As judges we’re looking for many things. You want to be surprised by something you haven’t read before and the wonderful thing about this prize is you find that in spades.
“During the judging, Fergal mentioned vigour, quality, originality and experimentation.
“This year there has been a lot of competition for those 10 shortlist slots.
“I’m always looking for originality and therefore how much you’ve read as a critic and a writer is relevant.
“The other thing is authorial voice – whether direct or indirect. Can you sense the presence of the author?”
a skilled rendering?
“It has to be a good book, but you’re also looking for a good translator,” said Maya.
“There’s the question of all the registers – how formal or informal the language is and how well the translators get that.
“Then there’s the whole question of slang or how dated the language is. Capturing all of that is a huge skill.
“As judges we have to consider whether a text has been flattened into uniform English. Does it capture the nuances?”
the EBRD Literature Prize, a showcase of innovation
“The nature of the prize and the countries where the Bank is investing means you find a lot of innovation,” said Maya.
“For example, where there’s a war, to capture the reality of things like bombs going off or a sense of being threatened, authors create new styles.
“In my experience, that extremis is something that comes out in new forms of writing.
“One of the books on the shortlist, My Women by Yuliia Iliukha, has been translated from the Ukranian by Hanna Leliv and it’s something the author calls flash fiction.
“It’s formal, it’s honed, but it’s, in some way, unfiltered – more raw, more emotional. It’s about anonymous women in war, and it’s very like poetry.
“Another thing that’s going on in central and eastern Europe is a reckoning with ultra-nationalism, and that’s something we noticed as a thread through some of the books.
“Celebration by Damir Karakaŝ, translated from the Croation by Ellen Elias-Bursać, is about the rise of the far right.
“It’s a subtly ironic title about the moment in 1941, when Croatia became independent for the first time in 1,000 years.
“That was the moment when, on the back of an alliance with the Nazis, it became a country – so it’s a very double-edged thing.
“There’s this thinking about history and memory.
“It’s 30 years since the end of the Yugoslav wars and the book is looking back to the Second World War, but that kind of nationalism rose again.
“It’s another very important thread.
“While judging we talked a lot about fact and fiction.
“What you get through literature rather than through news reports may be mundane human interaction but it’s just as interesting.”
looking forward
“The prize was set up to recognise the diversity of the cultures and languages in the places the bank operates,” said Maya.
“There’s still a competition for staff to review any book on the shortlist and we’ll be announcing the winner of that at the ceremony too.
“The EBRD isn’t just sponsoring this, it created it and it’s grown to be a prize in its own right.
“It’s important because you don’t want to think about people in mass metric or statistical terms.
“There’s nothing better than fiction for how people see themselves and their own realities – their problems, hopes and dreams.”
Read on for Maya’s thoughts on the shortlisted works – image by Ale Di Padova/EBRD
the shortlist
The key mission of the EBRD Literature Prize is to bring works from the countries the bank invests in to wider attention.
While the winner won’t be announced until June, we’ve reproduced the full shortlist here so Wharf Life readers can peruse those in line for the prize, get hold of books that take their fancy and make their own minds up.
As Maya says: “All of them are incredibly gripping reads.”
translated from the Czech by Alex Zucker, published by Bellevue Literary Press
>> “This looks at Kafka’s real letters to ‘F’ but through the eyes of her descendants,” said Maya.
“It’s a sceptical look at the cult of Kafka from the point of view of the family of a woman who appears in his work and it looks at how women are seen in his work.
“It moves between fact and fiction, and there’s an article that tells you what’s real and what’s not.
translated from the Croatian by Ellen Elias-Bursać, published by Selkies House Limited
>> “This is partly about masculinity through the eyes of a man who was in the far-right militia, allied with the Nazis, and then re-emerged in the 1990s” said Maya.
“I believe this writer was a fighter himself. He has taken a look at how people were persuaded by nationalism.
“It’s also a beautifully written novel about the land, about farming, about the countryside.
“It’s an expression of love of country that is not nationalistic.”
translated from the Polish by Antonia Lloyd-Jones published by Fitzcarraldo Editions
>> “This book is set in a sanatorium or health resort in Poland,” said Maya. “It’s funny and grim, like a horror story. It’s also gothic and full of misogyny.
“There’s an afterword about where these ideas came from – a who’s who of western culture.”
Olga Tokarczuk is the winner of the Nobel Prize In Literature
translated from the Romanian by Monica Cure, published by Seven Stories Press UK
>> “This is fiction based on fact too, looking at something not very well known globally or even within Romania itself,” said Maya.
“It’s about the carving up of the country from the end of the First World War and the Sovietisation, and the deportation of many people, including women and children after the Second World War to Kazakhstan on trains, with terrible gruelling journeys.
“It’s also about syncretism between Catholicism and paganism.”
Forgottenness by Tanja Maljartschuk
translated from the Ukrainian by Zenia Tompkins, published by Bullaun Press (Ireland) / Liveright (USA)
>> “Maljartschuk looks at two characters separated by 100 years– now and and a century ago in Ukraine,” said Maya.
“It’s about memory and history, and the effort to obliterate history in that country.
“She writes in Ukrainian, talks about the Soviet era, the killing of history and the ban on memory.
“It’s a wonderful reactivation of the past, which becomes an act of resistance.”
key details: the EBRD Literature Prize
The winners of the EBRD Literature Prize are set to be announced at its Canary Wharf headquarters on June 24, 2025, with authors and translators in attendance.
Members of the public will be able to register to attend the reception and ceremony closer to the time.
While he might well be too modest to admit it, sitting across from Carl McCafferty, there’s little doubt he can pick a winner.
It’s fair to say the managing director of Toni&Guy’s Canary Wharf salon in Cabot Place took a risk in opening on the estate in the year 2000.
But it’s a move that has paid off, the start of a business that recently celebrated trading for a quarter of a century.
“I’m the son of a pig farmer from Northern Ireland and grew up in a small town called Enniskillen,” said Carl.
“I moved to Belfast when I was about 18, saw an advert for Toni&Guy and joined them in London in 1998. I was 19.
“The world of hairdressing really appealed to me – salons are a nice environment to be in.
“First I worked in Sloane Square and then Covent Garden.
“With the business, there are really two directions to go – you can either work to become an art director or you can have your own business and that’s what I wanted.
“At that time, Canary Wharf was set to become the new financial district, which was very attractive to me.
“I was advised to grab it as a franchise,so I did.
“As the Jubilee line extension opened, we launched in Canada Place in March 2000.
“Opening was a bit overwhelming, but the salon quickly became number one in the group.”
While the Wharf had yet to see many of the towers that dominate its skyline today appear, the area was nevertheless feeling the benefit of the new transport link’s arrival, which saw workers and organisations arrive in ever greater numbers.
“Waitrose hadn’t opened yet, the only shop at the time was Tesco – but there were 76,000 people working on the estate,” said Carl.
“It was mainly bankers and most would come in every three or four weeks for haircuts.
“The Jubilee line changed everything.
“When Waitrose did open it quickly became very popular and the whole Canary Wharf area has now become very residential with lots of apartments.
“When I first moved to London, I did east and west.
“First I lived in Leyton and then moved to Richmond before I found a flat near East India Dock in a beautiful old building.
“I’ve always preferred walking to public transport, so I wanted to be close to work.
“Now around me in that area alone there are thousands of apartments at London City Island and Goodluck Hope.
“In the salon, when we started, weekdays were key, while weekends were really dead. Now Monday to Friday is busy, but the weekends are even stronger. “
Having weathered the pandemic with solid support from the parent brand, Toni&Guy Canary Wharf set its sights on the future and has just reopened following a full refurbishment.
“It definitely feels like the start of a new chapter,” said Carl.
“Sometimes you don’t realise you needed a refit until you’ve done it.
“My first shop here was beautiful and lasted for nearly 13 years and moving to our current location in Cabot Place was a great opportunity for a new fit-out.
“Getting another new look has been a really exciting process.
“We’re the flagship of the brand, the benchmark and the design we’ve got now is going to be the blueprint for other locations.
“One brand we looked at for inspiration was Louis Vuitton – we were just blown away by their retail offering.
“The design we have is great with glass and perspex – everything in the main areas is bright and airy.
“We’ve also changed the colours for a more spacious feel.
“Before everything was white but now we have more organic tones, with browns and greys along with a change in lighting to make the main part of the salon feel brighter.
“We’ve also used low lighting, similar to a spa, to help people switch off from work along with hair therapy treatments and massages.”
Visitors to Toni&Guy today will find a welcome desk in shades of brown, with gold accents and a display of brightly lit products.
The salon floor itself features branded mirrors, columns of foliage and vibrant orchids, while the sinks for washing customers’ hair are located off to the side and come with hi-tech chairs and muted lighting.
Striking lightboxes, complete with House Of Toni&Guy branding complete the look, a reminder of the brand’s strong links to fashion and the staff’s extensive training.
“Those who want to work with us apply for an apprenticeship and we train them at the Toni&Guy Academy for two years,” said Carl.
“Then after 18 months on the floor, you get a very good job with status.
“The academy is really the pulse of the brand – where it all happens.
“Recruiting can be a challenge, we don’t take on just anyone, but this area has been good for attracting staff.
“I’m proud of the team and what we’ve achieved here.
“We’ve won more than 35 awards, which is a big thing for me because they are really competitive.
“Running a franchise has been great. Toni&Guy has always moved with the times – we’ve been the official partner of London Fashion Week for 20 years – so we have lots of fingers in pies.
“Canary Wharf is the same, it’s really continued to develop over the time I’ve been here.”
Toni&Guy in Canary Wharf is located directly under One Canada Square.
The salon is open on weekdays 8am-8pm, on Saturdays 8am-6pm and on Sundays 9am-6pm, offering a comprehensive range of cuts, colour treatments and styling for men and women.
But it won’t be so very long before she’s carrying passengers and cyclists from Rotherhithe to Canary Wharf and back.
When that happens, it’s not an overstatement to say London’s public transport will have entered a new era – one where vessels on the river are powered by electricity.
“She’s the first of her kind, not just for us, but in the country and, when considering the way she operates, possibly in Europe and perhaps even the world,” said Sean Collins, CEO and co-founder of Uber Boat By Thames Clippers.
“Orbit Clipper is designed as a double-ended ferry, which is nothing new – it’s a well established method for loading and unloading vehicles, passengers and cyclists.
“What’s different is that when she’s in operation, the route will feature automated docking on both sides.”
This innovation is essential.
One of the things limiting the wider adoption of electricity as a power source for boats is the battery capacity.
In order to perform effectively, Orbit needs to top up her reserves each time she reaches a pier, disengaging her engines and effectively plugging in.
When Thames Clippers’ other vessels visit a pier, the captain holds the craft steady against the currents of the river using its engines which, in combination with ropes, allow gangways to be lowered, passengers to get on and off and then a speedy departure.
Uber Boat By Thames Clippers co-founder and CEO, Sean Collins – image by Jon Massey
automated docking
“To work properly, Orbit has to be fully secured so power can be disengaged,” said Sean.
“There will be an arm that extends and pulls her into the dock, which gives the batteries some downtime and that’s what allows us to operate over a full day before she recharges fully overnight at Canary Wharf.
“While Orbit will depart and arrive from the piers automatically, a captain will be in command of the vessel as she travels across the river.
“At present we still need that although there may be a time in the future when that’s no longer the case.
“It’s a challenge because there are so many other vessels on the water and with the navigational rules we have, the ferry doesn’t have the right of way.”
The plan for Orbit is that she will cross the river every 10 minutes on weekdays and every 15 minutes at weekends.
This is similar to the service level provided on the route by the previous ferry, but the new boat offers a considerable increase in capacity.
“She caries a lot more people and there’s room for 100 bikes too, so the boarding may take slightly longer,” said Sean.
“I think the demand will be there for this route – you have to build for the future.
“Looking at the way the world has changed – the amount of food deliveries that are now being done by push bike, for example – there’s so many more opportunities around zero-emissions transport.
“We’ve reduced the gradient of the walkways down to the river and passengers will be able to access the ferry from Rotherhithe Street.”
Finishing touches: While Orbit Clipper was built on the Isle Of Wight, she’s completing her fit-out in east London – image by Jon Massey
reducing emissions on the river with Orbit Clipper
Supported by Innovate UK and built on the Isle Of Wight, Orbit is the latest project for Thames Clippers in its ongoing pursuit of environmentally friendly transport solutions.
Aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050 and a 50% reduction by 2035, the company recently launched its third hybrid boat, Mars Clipper, as part of its river bus fleet.
Currently, Orbit is finalising her fit-out at Trinity Buoy Wharf before a programme of testing between Rotherhithe and Canary Wharf can begin.
As the automated docking system is completely new, Sean and the team need this time to ensure everything is working as it should before their first zero-emissions craft welcomes members of the public.
“The ferry route was an obvious one on our network for us to look at converting to an all-electric craft,” said Sean.
“Each journey across the river is just over a minute long and electrical power works well for that sort of duration. It’s the right thing to do for the environment.
“At the moment all-electric operation would not work for our longer routes as each vessel would have to fully recharge for an hour for every loop.
“The amount of batteries we’d need to carry would also make the boat very heavy, which would have repercussions for stability and safety.
“At the moment we turn boats round in 10 or 15 minutes between loops – charging just wouldn’t work commercially.”
scope to expand
“However, I see systems like the one we’ve developed for Orbit as being of national, even global significance, as a way to cross rivers without impacting the free navigation of vessels on them,” said Sean.
“When you look at bridges that lift to allow boats under, they create significant delays for traffic and pedestrians and the boats can’t go on their way unless they’re raised.
“Tunnels are often difficult to access, especially if elevators have broken down.
“We’ve got to be thinking about getting people out of their cars and onto public transport and boats like Orbit provide a really great alternative for people who need to cross the river on foot or by bike.
“She has multiple doors at either end so people can walk their bike on, stand next to it and then push it off when they reach the other side.
“We’re aiming to launch it in the spring or summer, but the system is a completely new design, an engineering first, so it does need testing thoroughly.
“We’re really thankful to Innovate UK, Canary Wharf Group, and the Port Of London Authority as well as Tower Hamlets and Southwark Councils for supporting us to get this project underway.”
key details: Orbit Clipper
Orbit Clipper is expected to start ferrying passengers between Canary Wharf Pier and Doubletree By Hilton London Docklands Riverside in the summer.
“My grandma told me recently that she wasn’t surprised I was starting this business, because I grew up with flowers all around me,” said Julia Knyazevich.
“As a child I lived with her in a little village in the mountains in Ukraine.
“She had a big garden where she’d plant lots of different flowers and I loved it.”
A major change in Julia’s life came at the age of 16 when, speaking no English, she travelled across the sea to join her mother in the UK.
Adapting to her new environment, she studied fashion buying and worked with major brands such as Dior and Tommy Hilfiger before embarking on a career with luxury lifestyle management company Quintessentially.
Now she’s decided to transform a passion into a business.
“After the pandemic, I spent time travelling, including a long period in Thailand,” said the West India Quay resident.
“I also studied floristry. It’s a discipline that’s always developing, with new trends constantly emerging and I had the idea to start a business.
“While travelling, I’d organised a big birthday party for my husband in Italy – I was looking for a company to help with that, but I couldn’t find one so I decided to do it myself.
“I really enjoyed the process of finding all the decorations and flowers for the long tables and creating the event.
“My husband suggested I should start my own business, so I have.”
The Flower Club is set to open this spring in Canary Wharf – image by The Flower Club
Her brand is inspired not only by the flowers in her grandma’s garden, but also by one of her favourite places in London.
“I absolutely love Petersham Nurseries in Richmond,” said Julia, who moved to the Canary Wharf area in May.
“When I visit the nurseries, I never want to leave. It’s not for everyone because some people prefer classic bouquets to the more unusual arrangements and installations they create.
“For The Flower Club – a name inspired by Thai cafe The Coffee Club I used to visit while living there – my preference is to use a technique that involves positioning flowers in a bouquet to reflect the way they grow in the wild.
“The aim is to create something that looks natural rather than artificial and it’s better for the flowers because they last longer.
“When I do arrangements I like mixing flowers with fruit or vegetables. It might sound crazy to some people, but it’s something different.
“I also get a lot of inspiration from the Cotswolds. I love visiting the area every few months and looking in the flower shops.
“My aim for Canary Wharf is to bring something similar here.”
Julia has been inspired by her grandmother’s garden and the work of Petersham Nurseries – image by The Flower Club
building a dream with The Flower Club
Julia is starting small – working with one other florist and freelancers – but dreaming big.
Ultimately, her idea is to foster a community around her business by hosting workshops under the umbrella of The Flower Club.
“I know this is just opening one little shop, but I have made a business plan,” said Julia.
“I know it’s a big dream, but I’m working hard on the branding. We’re starting slowly, but I want to build that community and eventually teach other florists.
“I have an unusual style of floristry and I’d love to set up a franchise model, not just in the UK but in other countries too.
“This is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. It’s been a journey getting to this point, but we’re almost there.
“Starting your own business lets you feel a kind of freedom compared with working for a company, but you also have to work on all aspects of the operation.
“It’s stressful because you feel like you want to control everything, but to be successful you need to do that work and be aware of every part of the business.”
One of the key drivers for The Flower Club is a mission to lessen the environmental impact of floristry.
“I try to source flowers direct from growers,” said Julia.
“There’s a wonderful farm in Surrey that I’m planning to work with this spring and summer and there’s another in Cornwall – it’s a long way, but they specialise in wild flowers, which I love.
“It’s better from a sustainability perspective to buy from UK growers because the flowers don’t travel so far and they don’t have to use chemicals to keep them fresh.
“It’s hard to say no to plastic wrapping completely, but The Flower Club is trying to minimise its use. I mainly use craft and tissue papers and biodegradeable products for my bouquets.
“For example, I use string to tie the stems together that’s made from natural materials.
“All of the bags we use in the shop will be paper too and the interior will be mostly decorated with wood and reclaimed furniture.
“It’s a small workspace, but it’s enough and it’s better to start from the ground up rather than take big risks.
“I’ve planned the layout and have made it as comfortable as possible both for workers and our customers.
“Having studied floristry, I know how to use the space professionally and it should be sufficient for our needs.
“I also want to use social media to educate people who want to know more about sourcing and also caring for flowers.
“It’s important to know how to treat the arrangements and all of my orders will have cards on how to properly care for the flowers.”
Prospective customers can find out more online – image by The Flower Club
opening The Flower Club at 8 Harbord Square
While the 8 Harbord Square shop will sell fresh cut flowers and gifts, there will be two further strands to Julia’s business that emerge when she’s up and running.
“I’ll be hosting workshops for people to participate in, especially around events in the calendar,” she said.
“That might be wreath making at Christmas, for example, or creating Easter displays.
“We’ll also have a service for events, which I have a lot of experience doing.
“Clients who want something special for their tables will be able to order flower arrangements, but also tableware and decorations.
“We will be here to explore ideas and designs to make things really special.
“There are lots of options – I’m a big fan of Murano glass, for example – and we can work in private homes, private dining rooms or in restaurants depending on a client’s needs.”
key details: The Flower Club
The Flower Club is set to open soon on the ground floor of 8 Harbord Square in Wood Wharf.
Visit the business’ website for updates or follow @theflowerclub_ldn on Insta.
As I’m sat chatting to Zeta Leung, one of the staff at recently opened Taiwanese restaurant Din Tai Fung is wrestling the venue’s cheerful dumpling-headed mascot through its doors and out onto the street in time for opening.
To be honest, I can empathise with Bao Bao, the character’s name and a tribute to the signature dish on the menu.
I’m inside the restaurant surrounded by friendly stone lions, warm bamboo and gentle lighting and I don’t want to leave either.
It’s also operating at a level beyond most chain venues.
Its first Hong Kong branch won a Michelin star in 2010 among many other awards and its food is served in the USA, Australia and across Asia including Japan, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia.
Its story, however, began in Xinyi Road in Taipei, Taiwan.
Din Tai Fung has opened its doors at Crossrail Place – image by Rebecca Hope
decades of heritage
“The business dates all the way back to 1958,” said Zeta, marketing manager at Din Tai Fung UK.
“Mr Bing-Yi Yang originally sold cooking oil with his wife, but by the 1970s the industry had changed and they weren’t doing too well.
“They decided to innovate by opening a little dumpling shop in part of their premises, using the oil in their dishes.
“Word got out and the obsession with the dumplings they were crafting began. Din Tai Fung became famous in Taiwan and the brand expanded globally in the 1990s, first to Japan.”
Din Tai Fung’s original restaurant in Taiwan – image by Din Tai Fung Taiwan
Zeta, who grew up in Hong Kong and has spent the last five years working in the UK hospitality industry, remembers visiting the original branch in Taipei at the age of 10 and has long been a fan of its food.
“I was amazed how consistent the quality was everywhere I went,” she said.
“I’ve always loved the brand – there’s a lot of story to be told and that’s why I wanted to come and work for Din Tai Fung.
“I believe in the company and its potential to grow in the UK and Europe – it’s unique.”
Zeta Leung, marketing manager at Din Tai Fung UK – image by Jon Massey
bringing Din Tai Fung to the UK
The company opened its first restaurant in the UK in Covent Garden in 2018 before expanding to Tottenham Court Road and Selfridge’s.
“Canary Wharf was a no-brainer because we know that we’re very much loved by the Asian community and it’s very much at the heart of that,” said Zeta.
“Then you have the office workers and the people living on the estate, which is a more recent development.
“It feels like the right time to be here with people returning to the office and we thought it was the perfect opportunity to open a neighbourhood restaurant when this space became available.”
Located in the unit formerly occupied by Chai Ki, Din Tai Fung’s interior manages to blend functional minimalism with warm welcoming touches.
There’s much use of bamboo and terracotta for texture, while stone lions watch on with benevolent expressions.
There’s a small bar area next to the entrance and a private dining space on a mezzanine above alongside the main restaurant.
“So we wanted a warm vibe for the Canary Wharf location – almost as though you’re walking in to somebody’s home – so we’re using the dark oranges of the tiles and natural materials to create that,” said Zeta.
“It’s a place where people can come for a light lunch or as the light fades somewhere that feels really cosy.
“Just as we do in all our restaurants, we’ve made sure guests can see our dumplings being made before they are served, which adds some theatre to dining here.”
Chefs at Din Tai Fung, hard at work making Xiao Long Bao dumplings – image by Jon Massey
Xiao Long Bao at Din Tai Fung
Din Tai Fung is known for these Xiao Long Bao, presented at the table in the bamboo steamers they are cooked in.
“It’s a very specific type of soup dumpling,” said Zeta.
“Once you steam it, the juices from the filling are contained in the wrapper.
“To eat them properly, guests dip the dumpling in the sauce provided – soy sauce, vinegar and ginger – and place it on their spoon, poke a small hole in it to release the broth and then enjoy the whole thing in one bite.
“Sometimes it takes a few goes to get right, but that’s part of the enjoyment.”
Din Tai Fung isn’t just about dumplings, however.
The restaurant offers a wide range of dishes for diners to choose from.
“There are more than 70 different items on the menu, separated into different categories,” said Zeta.
“We also have a large selection of cool appetisers such as cucumber with chilli sauce – it’s absolutely delicious.
“Our oriental salad is amazing too, with a rainbow of colours and everything is hand-cut.
“Our food is generally quite light and refreshing on the palate, different from some other Chinese restaurants.
“As a global brand, customers expect our dishes to taste the same in every single restaurant, so we set stringent standards to maintain that.
“For example, our rice and some other ingredients are imported from Taiwan, but we also source premium produce locally.”
A wide range of dishes is on offer at the restaurant – image by Din Tai Fung UK
sweating the small stuff
“It’s about attention to detail,” said Zeta. “Our fried rice is very popular among workers for take-away, such as a pork chop on egg-fried rice, where we use premium eggs.
“It sounds like an easy dish to make, but it’s all about timing and temperature – when to add the spring onions to the oil.
“It needs to be just right to get the scent of them evenly spread through the whole dish.
“It’s the same with everything we do as a brand.
“Take our drinks, for instance. Our staff are skilled in using simple ingredients to create signature cocktails – we’ve launched Din, Tai and Fung, which are the top sellers.
“Last year we also launched our very own lager in collaboration with a local brewer.
“We had a whole team of people involved in choosing the right hops and we designed the labelling and bottling in-house – the team visited the brewery to see the whole production process.
“We try to keep things simple, but it’s also what our customers want, staying true to the brand. Then, if you want to be extravagant, we have an incredible wine list too.
“We serve our food sharing-style and we also offer tasting menus and masterclass experiences where chefs demonstrate how the food is made.”
Full details of the restaurant, menu and events can be found on the restaurant’s website or by following @din-tai-fung-uk on Instagram.
The restaurant features bamboo in its interior design – image by Rebecca Hope
key details: Din Tai Fung
Din Tai Fung’s Canary Wharf branch can be found at Crossrail Place.
The restaurant is open from noon-10.15pm on weekdays, 11am-10.15pm on Saturdays and 11am-9.15pm on Sundays.
Proposals are being worked up to redevelop 77 Marsh Wall.
Currently office block Sierra Quebec Bravo sits on the plot, occupying the corner of Millwall Cutting and West India South Dock.
It’s also home to street food market Canary Garden and provides access to arts venue Theatreship.
Areli Developments, together with architects Patel Taylor, are currently engaged in a public consultation on their ideas to demolish the existing building and replace it with a tower.
While plans are at an early stage, the mixed use scheme could include a blend of co-living space, an aparthotel and apartments for private rent as well as affordable housing.
The mix of tenures will allow residents to stay for any length of time, whether that be one night, two years or more”.
Occupation will, however, be on a rental basis with no mention of apartments for sale in what will likely be the latest tall tower to arrive on the strip of land south of Canary Wharf.
900 residential units to rent
The consortium says its vision includes providing 900 residential units, offering flexibility for those moving in and aimed at attracting a range of inhabitants.
Alongside the accommodation, it promises to provide leisure amenities, green spaces, a lounge, gyms, shops, cafes and bars.
Early sketches show three connected towers set on a communal plinth that will have spaces for “residents’, community and public use”.
Public space will be partially sheltered, allowing people to spill out of the building at street level without getting wet.
The developer says the plans will create a new waterside destination on Marsh Wall, provide jobs both during construction and in the future, deliver opportunities for a programme of activities including a market and community events and deliver new cafes and restaurants.
The scheme aims to create “a place for people at all stages in life – for families, couples or individuals”.
Many developers have turned away from building homes for sale in recent years in favour of build-to-rent.
The advantage is these projects are often easier to finance with the promise of steady returns.
However, they can also lead to more unstable communities with people having less security over whether they remain in a property long-term.
key details: 77 Marsh Wall consultation
The public consultation on 77 Marsh Wall ends on March 31, 2025.
Interested parties are invited to have their say on the proposals via an online survey.
You can also email your thoughts to 77marshwall@kandaconsulting.co.uk
