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Stuff from Johannesburg

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The Carlton Centre: Famous Visitors

At the peak of its prestige in the 1970s and 80s, the precinct was the ultimate address for high finance and luxury. It included the Carlton Hotel, a 30-story five-star icon that hosted everyone from Mick Jagger and Henry Kissinger to Margaret Thatcher. However, as the political landscape shifted in the 1990s and the “capital flight” to the northern suburbs began, the Carlton Centre became a victim of its own geography. The luxury hotel was “mothballed” in 1998 and remains a haunting, empty shell today, with its grand ballroom and 600 rooms frozen in time—a stark contrast to the bustling, gritty energy of the streets below.