While some new buildings eventually blend in and become well-liked, others continue to stand out like a painful boil on London’s skyline.

The latter seems to be the case with 20 Fenchurch Street in the City – known as the Walkie Talkie – which has been crowned the ugliest building in the country.

It is the winner of this year’s Carbuncle Cup, awarded annually by architectural publication Building Design to “Britain’s worst building”.

Only completed last year, the 37-storey office tower has already built up a notorious reputation in its short life.

Its nickname, given because of its bulbous shape, has been amended to the Walkie Scorchie due to the building melting parked cars by deflecting sunlight on to the streets below.

There have also been complaints about the Raphael Vinoly-designed tower creating a wind tunnel effect at ground level.

And its sky garden has been criticised since opening earlier this year.

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Building Design editor Thomas Lane, who chaired the jury of judges that picked the Carbuncle Cup winner, said: “It is a challenge finding anyone who has something positive to say about this building.

“It bulges out towards the top in a cynical move to maximise the amount of high-value space at the upper levels, in defiance of the principle tall buildings should taper elegantly inwards or at least feature parallel sides.

“The result is Londoners now have to suffer views of this bloated carbuncle crashing into London’s historic skyline like an unwelcome guest at a party from miles away.

“To add insult to injury, the building has a deleterious environmental impact, melting parked cars and prompting complaints about high winds at its base and its sky gardens, which have all the charm of an airport terminal, weren’t built to the approved design.”

Three other unloved London buildings were also shortlisted for this year’s award.

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They included Woodward Hall in North Acton that local resident Jonathan Notley considered so bad he stood for parliament in the last election on a “ban inappropriate development” platform.

Mr Notley said, ‘This development should really be the architects’ tombstone. May they design no more and, perhaps as a penance or punishment, they should be condemned to do time in one of the tiny apartments they have designed for the students.”

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Also nominated was the YMCA building in Waltham Forest which was said to have “more in common with a detention centre than the public face of an organisation that exists to help disillusioned homeless young people.”

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And Parliament House in Lambeth was shortlisted with the warning that “if this building is representative of the new wave of tall buildings sweeping London it’s time to pack the bags and leave.”

do you think the Walkie Talkie deserves to be dubbed the ugliest building in Britain? What features does a new building need to have to be an attractive addition to London's skyline? Add your comments below or tweet us @Local_London