The actor and director Sam Wanamaker founded the project, and the reconstructed Globe opened in June 1997 with Henry V. It stands on Bankside about 750 feet (230 m) from the original site. The first Globe, built in 1599, burned in 1613, was rebuilt in 1614 and was demolished in 1644.
Theo Crosby of Pentagram was the architect, with Buro Happold as engineers. The design follows the 1599 building, drawing on the timber of the Theatre, the Fortune Playhouse contract and contemporary drawings. It is built entirely of English oak with mortise and tenon joints and no structural steel. The article says its thatched roof is the first and only one permitted in London since the Great Fire.
A thrust stage projects into a circular yard, with three tiers of raked seating. The article gives 873 seats plus about 700 standing groundlings. The candlelit Sam Wanamaker Playhouse opened beside it in January 2014.
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