The daredevil who ‘freeclimbed’ the Shard early this morning has been revealed as a 19-year-old from Oxford who spent months casing the building to discover when lax security would allow him to achieve his ‘dream’.
George King told MailOnline he experienced a ‘Godlike feeling’ at the top of the building saying: ‘It’s a totally remarkable experience. Euphoria is an understatement.’
But he also revealed he had scoped out the building – considered one of the capital’s most likely targets for terrorist activity – every other day for three months wearing numerous different disguises.
He said: ‘It took me four months to plan to get there. I moved to London to plan this climb, so I was close to the Shard.
‘I spent months looking at sensors, looking at cameras, timing security.’
He said he discovered the security, both police and building security, was ‘least active’ around the London Bridge area at around 5am.
Asked about his reconnaissance of the building, he explained: ‘For three months it was every other day, and I’d change my disguises regularly.
‘Sometimes I’d be in a suit, sometimes I’d be on crutches, sometimes I’d be in sporting clothes and I’d lean on the pillars looking like I was stretching but I’d be measuring them against my body’.
At around 5am today Mr King took just 45 minutes to scale the capital’s tallest building without the aid of a harness or rope, prompting police to rush to the scene and a review of security by the building’s Qatari owners.
He was encouraged in to the building at around the 95th floor after he reached the summit by Scotland Yard officers, whom Mr King said were ‘excellent’, adding: ‘‘they didn’t pressure me, I think without sounding arrogant they were very impressed.’
Describing the experience of reaching the top of the 1,017ft-tall building, the largest in western Europe, he said: ‘‘It’s a totally remarkable experience. Euphoria is an understatement.
‘It’s Godlike feeling, when your endorphins and dopamine are all firing at once. It’s indescribable.’
Mr King, who was the first person to freeclimb the tallest climbing walls in both the UK and Europe, said said he did it because it was a ‘dream’ sparked when he was just 13 on a school trip to Londonb.
‘I saw the Shard and thought, “one day I’m going to climb that”.’
The young daredevil, who was not arrested, said he had already identified his next climbing challenge but would not reveal the details – saying only it was ‘in the UK’.
George King, 19, from Oxford, was revealed as the daredevil who scaled the Shard today
Experienced freeclimber Mr King said he had been dreaming of the feat since he was 13
George King, pictured here atop a crane overlooking Wembley Stadium, said it was his dream
Earlier today Mr King told Mirror Online: ‘When I was 13 I first saw the Shard and thought I have got to climb this. That planted the seed for me.
‘I have done a lot of preparing for this, I have just kept on working at it. I am speechless – It is unreal.’
He said the hardest part of the ascent came just before the 95-storey building’s tapering peak.
‘There are generators near the top of the building and there was a lot of dirt and grease on them, and I had to push on to the next level to get past them,’ he said.
In an Instagram post after his climb, Mr King wrote: ‘ “In the past I’ve been called a daredevil, an adrenaline junkie, a reckless teenager and much more. I’ve always found that these names come from those who are ignorant or misunderstood about what I really do and why.
George King revealed he had scoped out the building for months before making his climb this morning
He clambered up all 1,017ft of Europe’s tallest building without ropes or a harness – and said his next target is also in the UK
‘It takes years of training and careful preparation to be where I am today, and this practice is achievable only because I see myself as someone who has followed a respectable passion, albeit an unusual one.
“I believe that every single one of us has a gift. Your mission is to find that gift, make it your passion, and then make it your purpose.’
The billionaire Qatari owners of the Shard have today launched a review of security after a ‘freeclimber’ was able to scale the capital’s tallest building unhindered for the second time in two years.
Police officers rushed to the 1,017ft skyscraper overlooking London Bridge at 5.15am with witnesses claiming the daredevil managed to the top without using a harness or a rope.
Scotland Yard has said with the help of Shard staff that they managed to get him inside – but later confirmed he was not arrested and allowed to go free.
The 95-floor skyscraper, which looks like a shard of glass and is owned by the tiny but super-rich Gulf state of Qatar, is considered one of Britain’s top targets for terrorists and protests.
Bosses will now be reviewing whether they need to ‘tighten security’ because of the stunt, the second of its kind since 2017.
Police rushed to the 1,017ft 95-floor skyscraper overlooking London Bridge at 5.15am (pictured) with footage from the ground showing the climber near the top
The climber managed to get to the top of the 95-floor building after scaling the 1,017ft skyscraper unhindered and without any ropes – he was coaxed inside but not arrested
In 2017 YouTube user CassOnline posted this stomach-churning image of himself scaling London’s tallest skyscraper
A spokesman for Real Estate Management, the Qatari-owned asset management company that operates The Shard, said: ‘We operate stringent security systems and protocols that are regularly reviewed.
‘Following this incident we are currently undertaking a thorough investigation.
‘It is our absolute priority to ensure the safety of visitors, workers and guests at The Shard.’
The company this morning confirmed it would be assisting the police with their investigation.’
Previous climbers who have set their sights on the 1,017ft building include YouTuber CassOnline, who clambered from the public viewing platform to the apex in 2017 after loitering around when the skyscraper closed at 9pm.
In 2013, a group of Greenpeace activists also scaled the building to protest against oil drilling in the Arctic, while the £2billion building was being built.
The previous year, The Shard secured a High Court injunction against Alain Robert, the climber nicknamed the French Spiderman, to stop him attempting to scale the building.
Injunctions are becoming the tool of choice for big businesses, using the civil courts to ban ‘freeclimbers’ and ‘rooftoppers’ from certain buildings and estates including the Shard and Canary Wharf, which is also owned by the Qatari investors.
Footage taken from below the Shard – western Europe’s tallest building – shows the climber near the top as crowds gathered below and were heard gasping as he climbed without any ropes.
David Kevin Williams tweeted video from the ground and said: ‘The guy’s got to the top and is being spoken to by the police’.
Another witness who watched the drama unfold wrote: ‘One person climbing up the outside of the Shard in central London. Two police cars, two ambulances and a drone on the scene’.
The incident raises questions about how the man was able to dodge security and scale one of Britain’s most high-profile building unhindered.
A Met spokesman said ‘Police were called at 5.15am following reports of a ‘freeclimber’ on the Shard.
‘Emergency services attended and the man went inside the building where he was spoken to by officers. He was not arrested’.
Police said that they have now managed to get him inside western Europe’s tallest building (pictured)
In 2013 Greenpeace protesters scaled the Shard and unfurled a number of banners (pictured) – but today’s climber appears to be a thrill-seeker
The Shard is one of London’s most popular tourist attractions and took three years to build before being opened to the public in July 2012.
It is also home to several offices, restaurants, a shopping centre and a luxury hotel with views across most of London.
But it has also been a target for freeclimbers.
In 2017 YouTube user CassOnline posted stomach-churning footage of himself scaling London’s tallest skyscraper.
The Vlogger filmed himself waiting at the viewing platform of the tourist hotspot until its 9pm closing time, before using a restricted staircase to reach the apex.
He then filmed himself leaning over the edge of the enormous glass structure before walking along a thin ledge close to the top of the building.