Glass roof

A remote-controlled roof is one of a number of glazed features that have been used to provide additional light and a sense of space in a London property with limited space.

Located behind Harrods, the property featured rooms stacked on top of one another, leading its owner – designer Ou Baholyodhin – to extend the ground floor and then build a terrace on top of the extension, Fred Redwood writes in the online pages of the Times.

A miniature conservatory is featured in the corner of one room.

"But the piece de resistance is the electronically controlled glass roof, which peels back to reveal the second, main roof terrace. From up here, four storeys above street level, there are the most wonderful Mary Poppins views across the rooftops," Mr Redwood concludes.

Meanwhile, the New York Times recently featured an article which noted that glazed features can function as a signifier of openness in a property.