The haphazardly arranged tiers and pathways of this year’s Serpentine Pavilion offer a shady area to sit on a hot afternoon in London. Children looking for adventure charge through cork-lined gangways and leap over steps. Adults drink, read, talk and sleep – as adults do. The pavilion mutually lends itself to all of these arrangements. [...]

John Penrose is the Conservative Minister for Tourism and Heritage. This month, he rejected a renewed application from the 2oth Century Society to list the Southbank Centre. And his department took the further step of granting a certificate of immunity for future attempts to list. This took place with the support of the Southbank Centre administration. [...]