Olympic sponsors' logos to be beamed onto Tower Bridge

Last month City Hall announced that the Olympic rings and Paralympic agitos will be hung from Tower Bridge during next summer's games.

Planning applications for the temporary installation of the rings – and the bridge's new colour-changing lighting system – have been submitted to Southwark Council and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

Documents submitted to Southwark Council reveal that during the Olympics and Paralympics there will be a daily light show at the bridge which will involve the raising and lowering of the rings and agitos and the display of sponsors' logos for 30 minutes.

Turley Associates explains in its submission to Southwark Council: "Every evening during the respective games, there will be an evening presentation in the form of a lighting display to the bridge which will involve a sequence of colour changes including the lighting of different components of the bridge such as the tower, turrets and bridge span, and launching of the rings/agitos.

"Fundamental to the funding of the installation of the permanent lighting, Olympic Rings and Paralympic Agitos is the sponsorship recognition of the Olympic partners EDF and GE whose logos and those of the ODA and Olympic rings will be projected onto the lower portions of the two towers."

The logos will be projected onto the north and south towers of the bridge on both the downstream and upstream sides.

The prospect of commercial images being projected onto a grade I listed building could well prove controversial.

Plans to place adverts on the scaffolding shroud that covered the bridge's bascules during recent repainting work were abandoned after concerns were raised by English Heritage and the World Monuments Fund. Tower Hamlets Council also made its opposition clear.

EDF is also embroiled in a dispute with Lambeth Council about the corporate orange paint it has applied to one of the capsules of the London Eye.