An Aztec-tinged revamp topped with a crinkle-cut tiara: inside the sparkling £1.3bn Olympia reboot

T he money shot for the redevelopment of London’s Olympia exhibition centre is a bank of staircases and escalators soaring upwards, Aztec temple-style, to an elevated concourse sandwiched between the colossal barrel vaults of the original exhibition halls. In a modern homage to its historic predecessors, the concourse is also crowned by a glass vault, crimped like a fan, its origami pleats connoting sparkling, flashy newness, a tiara of cubic zirconia among the heritage diamonds. Looming behind the tiara is what appears to be a cluster of cylindrical towers, but are actually the rounded ends of a steroidal stepped office block, with master-of-the-universe views over London, from Wembley to Crystal Palace. Already ensconced and enjoying those views are the staff of the Premier League’s media production arm, which has a brand-appropriate mini football pitch on its expansive terrace. double quotation mark 'Will it be enough to entice the Chelsea set?' asked Tatler magazine Effortlessly accommodating spectacles as disparate as Miss World and the Chemical Brothers, Olympia has long oiled the wheels of commerce and culture. The Grand Hall, a humongous iron and glass confection embodying the puissance of Victorian engineering, has seen it all, from cat fancies and dog shows, to concerts, sporting events, military tournaments and a plethora of trade fairs promoting everything from cars to chocolate. The glittering cherry on a very chunky developmental cake … the Olympia’s canopy. …