Parliament Square rice paddies
This view across Parliament Square shows paddy fields running up to the walls of the Palace of Westminster. The land that once housed political protest is now part of the city’s food production effort.
In this scenario London has adapted to rising water tables in radical ways. Managed flooding is now the name of the game, as is self-sufficiency in food. Central London is a network of rice paddies – and Londoners’ diet is largely rice-based.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
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Thames Tidal Power
The river remains a focus of power generation, just as it was for the great coal-powered power stations of old. Around the old Thames Barrier a number of new tidal power stations are using the tidal flows up and down the Thames to generate electricity for thousands of London businesses and homes.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
Background photography © Jason Hawkes
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‘The Gherkin’
The iconic City office tower is now high-rise housing. Originally converted into luxury flats, the block soon slid down the social scale to become a high-density, multi-occupation tower block. The Gherkin now worries the authorities as a potential slum.
Refugees from equatorial lands have moved north in search of food. They make their homes in the buildings that once drove world finance – before the collapse of the global economy.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
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Skating at Tower Bridge
As the Gulf Stream slows a mini ice-age brings temporary relief to heat-weary Londoners. Winter skating becomes London’s most popular sport and Tower Bridge is a favourite spot.
The scene harks back to the 17th century when artists loved to paint London’s Frost Fairs. Then, the Thames froze over because the river flowed sluggishly. Now, the river flows quickly but every winter the temperature falls to new lows.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
Background photography © Jason Hawkes
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Kew Nuclear Power Station
The sunset over Kew Gardens catches London’s brand new nuclear power station on the banks of the Thames.
Nuclear power is now widely accepted as the only viable alternative to fossil fuels. Expert opinion confirms that new power stations are best located near the populations they serve and architects strive to create new ‘harmonious’ landmarks. This is nothing new for London, which has a tradition of siting its power stations in its middle: Battersea, for example.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
Background photography © Jason Hawkes
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Buckingham Palace Shanty
The climate refugee crisis reaches epic proportions. The vast shanty town that stretches across London’s centre leaves historic buildings marooned, including Buckingham Palace.
The Royal family is surrounded in their London home. Everybody is on the move and the flooded city centre is now uninhabitable and empty – apart from the thousands of shanty-dwellers. But should empty buildings and land be opened up to climate refugees?
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
Background photography © Jason Hawkes
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Trafalgar Square Shanty
Nelson looks down on a shanty town of climate refugees. As the equatorial belt becomes uninhabitable, so people are driven north in search of food and security. People settle wherever they can and many reach London.
This is the political dilemma of the day for all European countries. The numbers are overwhelming. London’s strategy is to cluster the new arrivals in the historic centre, rather than spread them through the suburbs, where most Londoners now live.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones
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Camel Guards Parade
Traditional rituals have altered beyond recognition, along with the climate. Here, on Horse Guards Parade, horses have been replaced by camels – animals that can withstand the heat of the parade ground. The change was controversial but the London Tourist Board argued strongly in favour. Tourism remains important for London’s economy.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones
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London as Venice
London has become uninhabitable. Every year spring tides surge through the Thames Barrier, making London the new Venice. But whereas the city of gondolas has come to terms with water, London is overwhelmed.
This image shows the impact of 6-metre flooding, the level required to breach the Thames Barrier.
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
Background photography © Jason Hawkes
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The Mall – Royal Power
That archetypical British driveway The Mall, has become a wind-farm. Wind turbines tower over flags, as the desperate quest for renewable energy takes precedence over any remaining notions of Britishness. Cars? Now what on earth were they?
Wind farms are usually associated with bleak moors, distant hillsides or faraway patches of sea. But will we see more in our own back yards, even royal ones?
Image © Robert Graves and Didier Madoc-Jones.
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