David and Greta Iredale are seasoned builders. They built their first house in 1956; their second, nine years later. Having lived in it for 40 years, the timber house they designed themselves began to rot away, so they decided to pull it down and replace it with a prefab. But this was no post-war flimsy prefab. This was a solid, German built, precision engineered Huf Haus.
Built in a factory, each part was constructed by a different team of skilled workers, very much like a car production line. The kit house, complete with doors, windows, fixtures and fittings was then shipped to site and put together like some gigantic jigsaw. And with a schedule tighter than a pair of lederhosen, the Germans promised to put the entire house together in just six days.
True to their promise, the German construction team arrived at the crack of dawn but were delayed by the British crane driver, who arrived five hours late after being given the wrong address. But working late to make up for lost time, the German team succeeded in erecting the house in just six days as promised.
Impressed by the German's efficiency, designer David and Greta's next challenge was to personalise the inside of their stark home through intelligent interior design.
Four years on, Kevin is back to see if David and Greta been able to stamp their own identity onto this distinctive building.
