Battersea Power Station in London, England, completed in 1939, was the first in a series of very large (for the era) coal-fired electrical generating facilities set up in England as part of the National Grid power distribution system then being introduced. The grade II listed building is being converted to a large commercial and entertainment complex as the centrepiece of a project to rejuvenate the area.

During the 1920s electricity was supplied by small companies that built stations dedicated to a single industry or group of factories, and sold any excess power to the public.

Due to differing standards of voltage and frequency, Parliament decided that the power grid should be a single system under public ownership. This sparked a storm of protest from those who thought that the government should not be involved. It would be another 30 years before nationalization was completed.

Meanwhile several private power companies reacted to the proposals by forming the London Power Company in 1925. Their plan was to build a smaller number of very large stations and sell the power to anyone who wanted it. Their first power station was planned for the Battersea area on the south bank of the River Thames in London.

tags: london, building, film

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