Why Do We Have ‘Ugly’ Buildings?
Summary
Hosts Alice Loxton and Ben Henderson explore the history of modernist architecture, tracing its origins from Adolf Loos’s rejection of ornament to Le Corbusier’s functionalist ideals. They examine how post-war planners like Herbert Manzoni demolished historic British buildings to create utopian, car-centric cities, often resulting in unpopular brutalist structures. The episode covers the subsequent public backlash, including Prince Charles’s criticism, and the shift toward commercial skyscrapers under Thatcher.
Topics discussed
Sponsor message from Whole Foods Market
Intro to You're Dead to Me podcast
Local history anecdote and public preference for traditional architecture
Defining modernism, survivor bias, and housing vs non-residential buildings
Adolf Loos and the 'Ornament and Crime' lecture
Le Corbusier's radical urban visions and pseudonym
Spread of modernist ideas in Britain pre-WWII
Sponsor message and You're Dead to Me promo
Herbert Manzoni and post-war rebuilding of Birmingham
Rise of Brutalism and the Birmingham Central Library
Public dislike of Brutalism and the 'Concrete Collar'
Prince Charles and the Battle of the Styles
Thatcher era, skyscrapers, and commercial development
Conclusion and outro
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