The City of London's tallest building, the Heron Tower, neared completion this week after installation work attached a giant bird's head to the skyscraper. The tower stands 246 metres tall and can now catch passing herrings for smorgasbord accompaniment with the nearby gherkin.

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Photo / Fin Fahey

According to The Guardian, Sladen is reported to have demanded that Eshun be removed from his post, saying that his faith in the director, who took over in 2005, had been "gravely undermined". Similar (though unconfirmed) reports suggest that staff members, dismayed at the ICA's problems, have taken a vote of no confidence in the Eshun. Sladen's outburst provoked an angry rebuke from Yentob: an unnamed insider broke the Institute's code of omerta by whispering of a "heated exchange" between the two heavyweights, which culminated in Yentob ordering Sladen to clear his desk.

Eshun has communicated to staff his firm belief that he is the man to take the Institute forward, but given the rancour he seems to attract, from unimpressed colleagues to ICA members underwhelmed by his regular panel show performances on Newsnight Review and The Late Show, he may be the only one still convinced of his suitability. Anybody wishing to help the ICA over this sticky patch may wish to fork out a few beans for the fundraiser later this month, where the liberal imbibement of sangria could lead to these heady matters being resolved through the time-tested manner of biodegradable cloth handbags at ten paces.

Messing About on the River (E17) by Stuart-Lee via the Londonist Flickrpool.

Image by chrisjohnbeckett from the Londonist Flickr pool

Coke use generally is on the rise - whereas in 1996, around 3% of UK adults said they'd tried it at least once, it's now nearly 10% - and hilariously, MPs are blaming celebrities for turning it into a perceived 'middle class' drug (we suspect falling street prices and ineffective border policing might be more responsible). Perhaps Pablo's next campaign could be to highlight the effect of drugs production on the people of Columbia and / or global warming - on these figures, leaning on middle class guilt might prove more effective in cutting drug use than bloody noses in nightclub toilets.

By DeanN

The World Cup 'fan zone' was anticipated to create more than 100 decibles of noise with attendant fears the 60 proposed match screenings would bring excessive litter, drunkenness and bad behaviour to the genteel green space.

Local Council Brian Coleman is clearly relieved that "hordes of drunken football supporters" won't be congregating on his patch but his unhelpful reinforcement of footy fan stereotyping may make securing an alternative green space difficult. Let's hope other of our fabulous parks outside zone 1 aren't so delicate and might welcome those who want to watch the action from South Africa in company of like minded individuals alfresco this summer.

              

The Clerkenwell House of Detention, north-east of Clerkenwell Green, has a long and turbulent history stretching back to 1617, including its destruction by fire in the 1780 Gordon Riots. The prison was demolished in 1893 to make way for Hugh Myddleton School (the impressive building still stands). Down beneath the playground, however, significant remnants of the older buildings remain (see our map of underground London for approximate area).

We gained access to these extensive catacombs courtesy of Itasca Locations, a company that provides unusual venues to film-makers. (Check out their web site for an impressive roll call of locations with pictures.) Previous productions to make use of the Clerkenwell House of Detention include the recent Sherlock Holmes movie (representing the tunnels below Westminster), Spooks, the Secret Diary of a Call Girl and St Trinian's 2.

Click through the gallery for further descriptions, and check out our video walk-through below.

Inside the Clerkenwell House of Detention from Londonist on Vimeo.

Images by Dean Nicholas and M@ Brown.

The sort-of-revolutionary pedestrian crossing at Oxford Circus has been declared a topping bit of town planning by its designers. (To employ an over-used phrase, 'they would say that, wouldn't they'.) TfL have done the math, and calculated that the decreased clutter and increased crossing options will save £6.5 million in journey times each year (we'd love to see the assumptions made in calculating this). While the nexus may have improved somewhat for the typical pedestrian, some grumble that traffic flow, already bad in the area, has worsened. The BBC quote one taxi driver who calls the crossing 'quite absurd'. What's your verdict? Image / Helen Duffett.

A large fire is currently preventing Southeastern and FirstCapitalConnect trains from entering or leaving London Bridge. The blaze is beneath railway arches and is believed to involve gas cylinders. Twitterers report major disruption at Waterloo East and Waterloo as a result. Updates to follow.

Update 9.00am: Cannon Street and Charing Cross stations are also reportedly closed following the fire, which took place at a disused railway arch on Debnams Road, Bermondsey at 3am this morning. The Guardian reports that 10 fire engines attended the scene, and 15 people had to be evacuated from nearby flats.