15 fun facts about the London Eye

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Since its opening in 2000, the London Eye observation wheel on the South Bank of the Thames has become a symbol of the British capital as Tower Bridge or Big Ben.

Each of the observation capsules offers 360-degree views of the London skyline. Over the years, the Eye has carried the Olympic torch and countless celebrities, and has become a popular location for films including family favorites such as “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer” and “Harry Potter and the order of the Phoenix”.

Here are 15 fun facts you might not know about the London Eye.

1. The observation wheel is the UK’s number one paid attraction. In an average year, the London Eye receives more visitors than the Taj Mahal and the Great Pyramids of Giza.
2. Since its opening in 2000, the London Eye has welcomed almost 80 million visitors.
3. This was not London’s first big wheel. The London Eye was preceded by The Great Wheel, a 40-car Ferris wheel built for the Empire of India Exposition in Earls Court. It opened in 1895 and remained in service until 1906.
4. It was supposed to be temporary. Built to celebrate the Millennium, the London Eye was originally to stand on the Lambeth Council grounds on the banks of the Thames for five years. But in 2002, the Lambeth Council granted the Eye a permanent license.

1. Don’t call it a wheel of fortune. The London Eye is the tallest cantilevered observation wheel in the world. What is the difference? The Eye is supported by an A-frame on only one side, and the carriages are off the edge of the wheel rather than hanging low.
2. There are 32 capsules or one for each of the London cities. The capsules are numbered from 1 to 33, without the number 13 capsule for superstitious reasons.
3. Each capsule weighs 10 tons or a whopping 20,000 pounds.
4. In 2013, the second capsule was named the Coronation Capsule to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and was awarded a special plaque.

1. Each rotation of the London Eye lasts approximately 30 minutes, which means that the capsules travel at a speed of 0.6 miles per hour. Thanks to this slow rotation speed, passengers can board and disembark without the wheel having to stop
2. If you add up all the rotations the Eye has completed in its first 15 years, the distance adds up to 32,932 miles, or 1.3 times the circumference of the Earth.
3. In one year, the London Eye turns 2,300 miles, which is the distance from London to Cairo.
4. The London Eye can carry 800 passengers per rotation, which is equivalent to 11 red double-decker London buses.

1. On a clear day, you can see up to Windsor Castle, which is about 25 miles away.
2. The London Eye stands 443 feet tall, or the equivalent of 64 of the iconic red phone boxes stacked on top of one another.
3. To mark special occasions, the eye is often illuminated in different colors. For example, it was lit up in red, white and blue for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.