Shard tickets "too expensive", says Renzo Piano

Speaking to Sarah Montague on the BBC's HARDtalk programme, Renzo Piano admitted that the £25 price tag for tickets to The View from the Shard attraction was too high.

Advance tickets cost £24.95 with same-day bookings priced at £29.95 and tickets for immediate entry a whopping £100 each.

"£25 is too much, but everything in this town costs £25," said Renzo Piano.

"I've been trying to take the price down," he said, explaining that he had asked his wife to research the price of other attractions in the capital.

He continued: "I agree it's too expensive, because one of the aims of this building is to give London back to the people and to be public, so of course costing £25 is a bit too much, that's for sure."

Piano accused critics of the building – who claim it will be an elite centre of wealth and power – of being overly moralistic.

"If you look carefully this building will be used every day by 10,000 people at least," he said.

The View from the Shard opened to the public last Friday when Mayor of London Boris Johnson cut a ribbon to welcome the first visitors. Problems with one of the lifts led to long queues outside the attraction's Joiner Street entrance.

• Watch Renzo Piano's HARDtalk interview on BBC iPlayer