The AJ editor asks Who wants or needs shiny new glass and steel towers? Meanwhile results from NLA’s annual tall building survey reveal the pandemic has not led to a London tower downturn. This issue features building studies of three recent tall buildings; Allies and Morrison‘s 100 Bishopsgate tower, David Chipperfield Architects‘ NYC project The Bryant and The Water Tower by Tonkin Liu.

PLUS We reveal the winner of this year’s AJ Small Projects Award; a news feature on unpicking the London Plan: what you need to know about housing, the circular economy and tall buildings; Penny Lewis reviews Reinier de Graaf‘s debut novel The Masterplan; AJ Sketchbook, and opinion columns from Hattie Hartman on COP26 and Kunle Barker on sustainable best practice.