122 Leadenhall Street, which is also known as the Leadenhall Building, is a skyscraper in central London. It opened in July 2014 and was designed by the Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners; it is known informally as The Cheesegrater because of its distinctive wedge shape similar to that of the kitchen utensil with the same name. It is one of numerous tall buildings recently completed or under construction in the City of London financial district, including 20 Fenchurch Street, 22 Bishopsgate and The Scalpel. The site is adjacent to the Lloyd's Building, also designed by Rogers, which is the current home of the insurance market Lloyd's of London. Until 2007 the Leadenhall site was occupied by a building owned by British Land and designed by Gollins Melvin Ward Partnership, which was constructed in the 1960s. That building was demolished in preparation for redevelopment of the site. By December 2009 the site was cleared but construction had stalled, initially due to the financial crisis. The project was revived in October 2010 and Oxford Properties co-developed the property in partnership with British Land. Site history Prior to the site's previous redevelopment in the 1960s, it had been used as the head office of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O) for over a century. From 1840, P&O had occupied, rent-free, the offices of Willcox & Anderson. However, business east of the Gulf of Suez increased in the late 1840s, so they needed larger offices. In November 1845, the King's Arms inn and hotel at 122 Leadenhall Street was put up for sale. P&O purchased the freehold for £7,250, and then commissioned an architect, Beachcroft, to design a new building. The cost of the new building was estimated at £8,000. In March 1848, P&O moved into the new office. In 1854, P&O unsuccessfully attempted to purchase the neighbouring building at 121 Leadenhall Street. They eventually took a lease from the charity which held it. They also bought leases of 80 years from St. Thomas's Hospital on the residential properties at Nos. 123, 124 and 125 Leadenhall Street, which were demolished to create a new frontage at No. 122. The new building provided more office space, some of which were for rent, and a spacious new courtyard. By the mid-1960s P&O needed to redevelop the site to provide increased office space. At the same time, the Commercial Union Assurance Company was planning a