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I really enjoy looking at Chatham Dockyards in Kent. There are these amazing buildings, the Slips, that look like they might have been used to make blimps. But in fact they date back to the 19th century when they were constructed for shipbuilding. They are huge creations with an extraordinary framework, and they make a big impression on the skyline. The museum has put some extra floors in so you can look down and see the staircases and ladders that the riggers used to climb up to reach the rigging and the tops of the masts for the fitting out. I’m not sure whether they were able to fit the whole mast in there but they are so big it’s entirely possible. I urge everyone to go have a look at them.

My blunder is Putney Wharf, which dwarfs the gorgeous and important church of St Mary’s. Not only is the church a lovely old building, but it was also where important debates about the future and the constitution of revolutionary England were held in 1647. It’s a shame the church no longer creates a silhouette on the skyline from Fulham, where I live, because it’s dominated by this edifice with blue lights. The Wharf looks like it’s something out of Metropolis!

The sad truth is that I could have mentioned any number of similar buildings along the riverside built for lawyers and bankers. I have an awful lot of regret about these condos that are going up all over the place. Are the banks of the Thames being developed to any sort of plan? I have a feeling that nobody knows what it’s going to look like when it’s finished.

And it bothers me that a walk along the riverfront will not be possible soon because one’s route will be blocked by private developments. We are losing the common ownership of the riverbank in the way the French have given up rights to their beaches.

Sir Thomas Allen is a classical baritone and opera director