Viewed here from the Golden Jubilee Bridge, the London Eye is Europe's largest Ferris wheel. The entire structure is 443 feet tall and the wheel has a diameter of 394 feet; it is claimed that you can see for almost 25 miles from the top of the wheel on a clear day. When installed in 1999, it was originally intended to be a temporary structure, able to be dismantled and transported to a new location, and had planning permission for just five years but its popularity has prompted its lease to be extended. Today it is a permanent fixture on the London skyline.
1888 puts it in the William Ewart Gladstone era; but is it he? If not, who then? There are apocryphal stories of notable Conservatives confusing the NLC for a public convenience when on their way to the House. Perhaps this is one of 'them' leaving.