Bonefish Blues
Banging donk
- Location
- 52 Festive Road
EFA
What's your favourite bit of brutalist architecture?
- Thread starter Yellow Fang
- Start date
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Grant Fondo
Guru
- Location
- Cheshire
LOLEFA
I did my jury service there many years ago and *I think* I can explain the layout. The side you see in the picture shows the main entrance at the base and public corridors at the middle level that give access in to court rooms. The high windows let in to the double-height courtrooms. From the inside, these allow light in very much from above, which combined with the dark wood interiors make the courtrooms quite foreboding.
The reverse side of the building has a single long glassed seating area along its entire length at the middle level. This is the jury service area and gives access to the courtrooms for the jurors. That side of the building also has the the prisoner management functions at the bottom. Overall it’s quite well thought out in the way that it segregates each function of the court.
It was built in the early 70s. A neighbour of mine maintains that its fortified appearance was deliberate to prevent attack by the IRA, but I’m sceptical as the troubles had only really got going a couple of years before. Like many public buildings it was showing its age even 15 years ago - it would have been a great location for a scene in Tinker Tailor.
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Whereas Cambridge's court was opened in 2004, so go figure... Prior to that, the court sat in the Guildhall fronting the market place.
GuyBoden
Guru
- Location
- Warrington
Not Brutalism, but Hulme Crescents, Manchester, was once the largest public housing estate in Europe. A plan for the future "mass housing on a scale and at a pace which would finally eradicate the scourge of the slums."
It became a lawless haven for the rave culture in the late 80 early 90's.
"The Crescents were finally demolished in 1994, replaced – for the most part – by a pretty conventional streetscape of red-brick terraces."
https://municipaldreams.wordpress.com/2014/03/11/the-hulme-crescents-manchester-a-british-bantustan/
For more info, see "The Great British Housing Disaster" documentary by Adam Curtis.
It became a lawless haven for the rave culture in the late 80 early 90's.
"The Crescents were finally demolished in 1994, replaced – for the most part – by a pretty conventional streetscape of red-brick terraces."
https://municipaldreams.wordpress.com/2014/03/11/the-hulme-crescents-manchester-a-british-bantustan/
For more info, see "The Great British Housing Disaster" documentary by Adam Curtis.
Grant Fondo
Guru
- Location
- Cheshire
Remember visiting a mate studying at UAE and quite liking the place.
Half the route is downhill!…
Re the OT... You forget I live in the fens!You'd have to answer to a pair of hungry and cranky cats if I don't make it back...
Here‘s another University building - the University of Oxford’s Denys Wilkinson building on the Banbury Rd. Quite the departure from the dreaming spires.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denys_Wilkinson_Building
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
It's the other half of the route I'm worried about...
On the other hand, if you ever fancy cycling under water, you can come out this way. Snorkel and flippers will be provided.
Grant Fondo
Guru
- Location
- Cheshire
Oh yes, remember that. Next door to Keble college
Designed by the same architect that HRH pinned his 'monstrous carbuncle' to ... one of the best buildings in Oxford imo.
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- Location
- London
Brunswick Centre, London.
More on:
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2006/oct/23/architecture.communities
https://www.londonxlondon.com/brunswick-centre/
In truth I don't think it was ever as rundown as one of those articles may imply - maybe just a bit ignored/underappreciated.
Always found it interesting ever since I first encountered it back in the very late 70s.
A while ago at a film in the area I got nattering to someone who had just moved into a flat there - though never managed to see it.
It has a close relative in north London which is also very interesting - not very well known but many folks may have seen the back of it when training it into Euston station.
- Location
- London
That north London one - found it.
Rowley Way - or the Alexandra and Ainsworth Estate.
Pretty sure I owe my knowledge of this place to some wonderful architecture bike rides that the great Lambeth Cyclists used to do (it's not in lambeth but camden but they got around).
A proud tenant/occupier whatever invited us up onto their terrace for a closer look.
Rowley Way - or the Alexandra and Ainsworth Estate.
Pretty sure I owe my knowledge of this place to some wonderful architecture bike rides that the great Lambeth Cyclists used to do (it's not in lambeth but camden but they got around).
A proud tenant/occupier whatever invited us up onto their terrace for a closer look.
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matticus
Guru
I think that one's been used as a few TV locations recently. (By "recently" I mean "not in The Bill" !)
To their credit, they've packed it with so much attractive green stuff it looks a nice place.
Grant Fondo
Guru
- Location
- Cheshire
Love that! Now Grade II* and, ahem, £500k+ for a 2 bed flat.
All uphill
Still rolling along
- Location
- Somerset
Not 1970s brutalism, but maybe brutal for the 2020s. Groningen Netherlands earlier today.
Defo looks more like UEA to me......not enough sunshine for UAE
We visited about 8 years back when our lad was considering options: quite a striking place....he ended up at the 'sister' uni, Essex - & up high in one of the stark blue engineering brick tower blocks.
