The London Eye gets a spruce-up for the first day of spring

One of London’s iconic landmarks has had a spring clean in time for the new season.

A cleaning crew braved heights of 135m to wash and polish the glass pods of the London Eye.

The landmark, which first opened in 2000, has 32 pods, each weighing 11 tonnes.

A crew of cleaners wore harnesses and protective gear while being hoisted atop the pods.

They were readying the attraction for the upcoming swell in visitors expected across the long Easter weekend, school holidays and the double May bank holiday in celebration of King Charles III’s coronation.

Imran Tauqir, general manager at the London Eye, which is sponsored by lastminute.com, said: “This is polishing with a panoramic view.

“Keeping every pane of glass in our pods gleaming year round is vital so we can ensure our visitors can take in the full majesty of our world famous views across the capital.

“2023 is set to be a big year for us, with London forecast to receive 21.6 million visitors across the year.

“We’re looking forward to a spring season of celebration in the capital, thanks to Easter, the coronation and an extra bank holiday.”

Asked why the pods are cleaned while in the air, rather than at ground level, a spokesperson said: “With 1,152 panes of glass to clean across the lastminute.com London Eye, we use a number of different techniques to ensure we get into every nook and cranny and each pod is pristine to perfectly showcase the panoramic views from 135m above London for our guests.”