FAQ

High Rise is a satire set in the 1970's based on a dystopian novel of the same name by J.G. Ballard about middle to upper class people who live in a luxury apartment block outside the city of London. In the novel, London is described as becoming poverty ridden, overcrowded, and polluted, and the apartment block is described as "moving forward 50 years into the future".

The middle class people live in the bottom section of the tower, the middle to upper class in the middle section, and the upper class at the top end. The architect of the building and his aristocratic wife resides on the top floor and they have turned the roof into their own garden. The poorest in society remain in the city.

Some analysts believe that Ballard was inspired by events that occurred at Trellick Tower in North Kensington, London in the early 1970's. Known for it's brutalist design, the building became a magnet for anti-social behaviour and crime and became known as "Tower Of Terror".