All event dates have expired.
If you're walking along the South Bank this week and spot a group of statues appearing to throw up murky brown water into a fountain, no, you're not hallucinating. A 10-metre-wide installation titled 'Fountain of Filth' has appeared at Observation Point near the OXO Tower, and it's making an important point.
The temporary structure features figures bent double, with dirty water pouring from their mouths into the basin below, all based on real people who have been affected by the country's appalling sewage pollution. Above them stands a suited businessman, dry and upright, with pockets and a briefcase stuffed with cash. It's dramatic, deliberately uncomfortable, and very hard to ignore.
The installation is part of the promotional campaign for “Dirty Business”, a new factual drama airing on Channel 4. But beyond the TV tie-in, the message is rooted in a real and ongoing issue – sewage pollution in Britain's waterways.
Over the past few years, water companies have faced mounting criticism for discharging untreated sewage into rivers and coastal waters. Regulators, campaigners and local communities have all raised concerns about environmental damage and public health risks. The debate has centred on infrastructure, investment, corporate governance and accountability, and it's not going away anytime soon.
According to the show's producers, the series draws on a decade-long investigation into England's water companies and features dramatised accounts of whistleblowers and people who say they've been affected by polluted water. The cast includes David Thewlis, Jason Watkins, Asim Chaudhry and Posy Sterling.
Near the fountain, visitors can scan a QR code linking to more information about the wider sewage debate and a petition calling for tighter regulation and reform of the water industry. The petition urges the government to strengthen oversight, increase transparency and prevent future discharges of untreated waste into public waterways.
The 'Fountain of Filth' is in place at Observation Point (SE1 9PP) from February 23–25. The nearest stations are Waterloo, Waterloo East and Southwark.
If you want to understand more about the issue – or add your name to the petition – you'll find more details here.