From maze to amazing Barbican to have £451m restoration

“Everything leaks,” said Philippa Simpson, the director of buildings and renewal at the Barbican, who is standing outside the venue’s lakeside area and inspecting the tired-looking tiles.

- Lanre Bakare Arts and culture correspondent

Water seeps through the cracks into the building below, and serves as a reminder of the job facing Simpson and the team who are overhauling the 43-year-old venue.

The first phase of the project will cost £231m, and Simpson hopes it will be finished in time for the 50th anniversary in 2032. The overall costs are estimated to be £451m.

A mammoth task awaits her. The Guardian is given a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings, including the plant room: a maze of concrete corridors lined by green pipework that is a third of the size of Wembley stadium.

Inside, five 250,000-litre tanks - that once provided hot water for heating - sit dormant and must be replaced. The issue is that the Barbican was built around them, meaning they need to be broken up.