The architect leading the Millennium project, Richard Rogers, has voiced concern about the lack of management for the event, but insists that time is not running out.

Lord Rogers: "Someone's got to give it order" (Dur: 0' 8")

In an interview on the BBC's Radio 5 Live, Lord Rogers said that the Government should appoint someone - or a small group - to oversee the whole project as soon as possible.

He said: "I think it's important we pull together the amazing series of events that are going on."

"We need a ringmaster"

"There is time to do it, and I think this is the right time to do it. If this is the only crisis we're facing, we're fine."

He compared the Dome to a circus without a ringmaster or an orchestra without a conductor.

Asked what kind of person he thought should be given the job, he suggested that a blend of "creative showmanship" and "innovation in communication" was required.

Lord Rogers condemned what he called an "amazing amount of misinformation" that has dogged the Millennium project, and expounded his vision of the festival's purpose.

The dome as it will look when completed

"From the beginning we've been calling it an 'odyessy into the future'. There was an understanding that it should be something that would make a difference to our living or show a way in which we could live today and into the future."

He said the Dome was just one part of a series of festivities: "These are unique dates and you might as well celebrate them," he ended.
 

Back to top | BBC News Home | BBC Homepage	©