The programmes
Presenter Kevin McCloud
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Programme 1: The Dirty Dozen
In March this year, Channel 4 launched the search for Britain’s most hated building – the one the public would most like to see razed to the ground. Eight months on, the votes have been counted and a shortlist of the worst offenders has been drawn up. It contains some notorious eyesores, like Westgate House in Newcastle, a couple of celebrities and one or two surprises, not least the winner of this year’s RIBA Stirling Prize award: The Scottish Parliament Building.
Over the course of four programmes, the 12 finalists will be examined and assessed by experts, not just in terms of aesthetics, but also according to quality of construction, scale and ease of demolition.
The first episode gives an introduction to the shortlist, focusing on some of Britain’s least loved buildings. These include: the derelict Lodges supermarket in Holmfirth, a blight on the picturesque town where Last of the Summer Wine is filmed; No 1 Westminster Bridge, the hideous hexagonal monster which has sat empty in the middle of a roundabout at Waterloo roundabout in London for a 20 years; and the Gateshead Multistorey Car Park, star location of the iconic 1960s film, Get Carter.
Programme 2: First Impressions
'When architects rule the world, I want to be Minister for First Impressions,' says former RIBA president and member of the Demolition panel, George Ferguson. He would target the buildings that damage civic pride by giving a towns a bad name.
In many cases, such buildings are points of entry: there were dozens of nominations for railway stations around the country, including Clapham Junction and Sunderland. The most offensive transport hub of all turned out to be the monstrous 1970s bus station that dominates Northampton town centre. Greyfriars is not only ugly, it's also unsafe and there has been widespread agreement for many years that the building should be destroyed. But it remains untouched by the wrecking ball.
A number of civic buildings, including those of Preston, Carlisle and Plymouth were also nominated, although it was the Scottish Parliament that made the shortlist – a shock to the Demolition experts who are fans of Holyrood. Could it be that the Parliament is hated not for its architecture, but for its £430 million price tag?
Programme 3: No Place Like Home
Bad housing can be blamed for any number of social ills, including high crime rates and poor health. Demolition received hundreds of nominations for residential housing that deserved to be razed to the ground, from boxy brand new homes via council blocks to rows of empty and derelict Victorian terraces. Most of the housing entries were, however, built within the last 40 years.
The news that so much modern housing has failed to stand the test of time comes at an important moment. The government is planning a massive expansion of the national housing stock in an attempt to meet demand for homes – but will these new properties be as cramped and badly designed as those built since the Second World War?
Plenty of housing estates might have made it on to the most hated list, though some of the very worst offenders, such as Chalkhill and Trowbridge, have already been partly or completely demolished. Just one made the final cut: Park Hill Flats in Sheffield, comprising nearly 1,000 homes, which received a huge number of nominations. Park Hill will not be facing the bulldozers any time soon, though, as the tower blocks are Grade II listed.
Programme 4: Cumbernauld Town Centre
Not just an individual building but an entire town centre – the new town of Cumbernauld, in Scotland – is Britain’s most hated 'building'. Hundreds of people voted to demolish this giant superstructure which was built in the 1960s as part of the government’s ambitious plans to deal with the problems of urban overcrowding.
A team of planners and architects was assembled to take part in a great urban planning experiment. Sadly, over time, that experiment was to prove a complete failure. The concrete structure is brutal and ugly; the walkways and malls are wind tunnels. Originally designed as a multipurpose complex, it was never able to attract retailers, while the penthouse accommodation was rejected by those who could afford to live elsewhere.
The Demolition team has gathered a group of architects and urban planners to devise a new plan for Cumbernauld. Will it be accepted by the local authority? And will this town, which many see as an icon of its time, be demolished or simply given a facelift?