Open City

This week Sahiba Chadha is joined by award winning architect Gurmeet Sian, to discuss:  Government design champion, the Office for Place is scrapped // New powers for councils to tackle empty High Street units // Angela Rayner massively restricts right to buy for new council homes // And a new campaign by the Twentieth Century Society to list recent buildings which are … ‘coming of age’ ...

This week Fran Williams is joined by Ramsey Yassa, an architect and founding director of NOOMA studio, to discuss:  UK architects facing scrutiny amid reports of 21,000 Saudi worker deaths // ACME takes over and reveals scaled-back Liverpool St station revamp plans // Mouldy, hard-to-heat rental homes spell royal scandal for Prince William // And is the architectural profession facing the pre...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by the architectural worker, writer and editors of the magazine Failed Architecture to discuss:  Rachel Reeves commits £500 million pounds more for affordable housing // Leading economist calls on Labour to spend large on arts and culture projects // David Chipperfield’s Chinese Embassy plans called in by Angela Rayner // And reflecting on the centenary of t...

This week Sahiba Chadha is joined by the architect Tara Gbolade to discuss:  Rachel Reeves' £1 billion boost for council housing in the autumn budget // How planning reform and design codes could help create 1.5 million homes // Calls for the government to engage more with architects on retrofit // And the architecture critic, Joseph Rykwert, has died aged 98 To help support excellent an...

This week Fran Williams is joined by the architectural journalist Amy Frearson to discuss:  The Elizabeth Line comes out on top at this year’s RIBA Stirling Prize // Government housing targets branded ‘unrealistic’ by local authorities  // The Olympic Park gets a refresh with a new public space for young women and girls // And the £4 million pound battle for Bethnal Green Working Men's C...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by the architect David Ogunmuyiwa to discuss: A luxury Croydon tower needing ‘extensive’ remediation after only two years // The president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, Muyiwa Oki announces a rebrand // Mayor picks top names for London’s new ‘town architects’ // And the campaign to see 11 Jubilee Line stations given protected heritage status To he...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by writer and housing activist Adam Peggs to discuss: Run for profit affordable homes spark rent rise fears // Questions over the government’s 1.5 million homes pledge amid troubling housing market data // London’s mayor approves controversial Wimbledon tennis redevelopment plans // And the government is set to back HS2 to Euston amid a growing outcry o...

This week Sahiba Chadha is joined by the renowned tree expert and author, Paul Wood, to discuss: Sycamore Gap one year on // Labour's ‘brownfield passports’ for new housing // the UK's missed tree-planting targets // and how millions of Britons want their cities carfree according to a new poll. To help support excellent and accessible, independent journalism about the buildings and the urban envir...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by Ewan Harrison, a lecturer in Architectural Studies at the University of Manchester. Campaigners lose bid to save Birmingham’s brutalist Ringway Centre // Sadiq Khan wins new powers to pedestrianise Oxford Street // Listing bid for Portsmouth Civic Offices blocked // And an abandoned leisure centre in West Yorkshire reimagined as a state-of-the-art skate park T...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by Tomi Balogun, a young architect studying the Bartlett and winner of the Beyond The Box People's Pavilion prize 2023. The Grenfell inquiry’s damning verdict sees architect Studio E given ‘very significant’ responsibility for the fire // A new design handbook making cities safer for women // Anthony Gormley slams plans to transform Coal Drops Yard in King’s Cros...

This week Fran Williams is joined by Gino Spocchia, senior reporter at the Architects Journal. ‘Retrofit-first’ council approves five demolitions in one scheme // Foster + Partners rumoured to be designing Manchester United’s new stadium // China revives plans for a new London embassy after Labour’s election victory // And an ‘intimate’ biography of acclaimed architect Zaha Hadid is on t...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by Tamsie Thomson, the chief executive of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland. Far-right rioting leaves struggling high streets and communities further scarred  // Angela Rayner announces ambitious planning reforms and a New Towns taskforce // A fire breaks out at Glasgow’s beloved Carlton Place  // And the London Festival of Architecture...

This week Sahiba is joined by journalist India Block, Deputy Editor of Homes and Property at the Evening Standard. The RIBA Stirling Prize 2024: this year’s finalists revealed // Rachel Reeves scraps landmark infrastructure projects // Acclaimed architect Peter Barber’s visionary idea to make Britain self-sufficient // And a London pavement parking ban is proposed as the row over e-bikes escalates...

This week Fran is joined by architect and writer Nana Biamah-Ofosu, the director of YAA Projects: an architecture, design and research practice focused on making, speaking and writing architecture. Six million people at risk from extreme heat in England, campaign group warns // 80% of potential first-time buyers can’t afford a deposit on a home in their area // Milton Keynes landmark The Point sav...

For our 150th episode, Merlin is joined this week by Jas Bhalla, an Architect, Town Planner, Urban Designer and founder of Bermondsey-based Jas Bhalla Works. Local authorities warn of urgent financial threat to council housing // UK’s largest housebuilder cuts output in blow to government targets // Lloyds bank to transform back offices into social housing // And the NIC and IPA are merged into a...

This week Merlin Fulcher is joined by Akil Scafe-Smith, urban designer and co-founder of RESOLVE. Labour bring back housing targets and lifts onshore wind ban // “Levelling up” is stripped from the housing department name and Matthew Pennycook is appointed as Housing Minister // Chris Williamson wins RIBA presidential election // And a contest is launched for the Grenfell tower memorial. The Brief...

This week Fran Williams is joined by Jan Kattein, architect, lecturer, author and founding director of Jan Kattein Architects.  Labour vows major housing announcements ‘within a fortnight’ of winning the election  // South London squatters take the emergency housing crisis into their own hands // The mega-bucks tutoring advert spotlighting inequalities within architectural education&nbsp...

This week Merlin is joined by Hilary Satchwell, architect, urban designer and director of Tibbalds, a South London-based planning and urban design firm. Bold new plans to reimagine UK department stores as sustainable housing  // Architects set out their vision to boost affordable housing after the election  // Black cab restrictions look set to be controversially lifted at Bank Junction&...

This week Merlin is joined by Henrietta Billings, the Director of SAVE Britain’s Heritage, a charity dedicated to securing the long-term future of Britain’s buildings. 86 historic buildings added to SAVE’s building at risk register // Labour’s manifesto commitments on housing watered down // Review into Glasgow School of Art fires ‘too costly’ says Scottish government // Campaign to save the Beatl...

This week Merlin is joined by Jack Cornish, Jack is the author of a new book called The Lost Paths: A history of how we walk from there to here. He also holds the venerable title ‘head of paths’ at The Ramblers - Britain’s largest walking charity. Labour moots community buy-outs of derelict land // A quarter of a million socially rented homes lost in England // Government facing legal bi...

This week Sahiba is joined by Hugh Pearman, an architectural writer and editor who is also chair of the 20th Century Society.  Architects demand a new ministry of housing  // C20 files for emergency spot listing of London’s City Hall // Cambridge discovers zero emission cement // And could King’s Cross and the Elizabeth Line be front runners for this year’s biggest prize in architecture?...

This week Merlin's joined by Adam Peggs, a journalist and activist. The surprise snap election being celebrated by architects // No Grenfell Tower criminal charges before 2026 // London’s Mayor pledges £100 million pounds to kickstart stalled housing // Liverpool Street station’s contentious redevelopment plans are sent back to the drawing board. The Brief is supported by Bloomberg Conne...

This week Merlin's joined by John Elledge, a journalist and author of the new book “A History of the World in 47 Borders: The Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps”. Museum of London’s contentious demolition cleared for approval // Government minister accused of misleading ‘15-minute city’ claims // How an AI deep fake video conned an engineer out of £20 million pounds // And the new ‘anti-boring a...

This week Merlin's joined by Alpa Depani, an architect and the head of strategic planning and design at the London borough of Waltham Forest. Calls for new public ballots on all tall buildings above 60 metres // House building drops to its lowest level since the pandemic // Single-sex toilets to be required in all new public buildings in England // And Norman Foster calls on architects worldw...

This week Sahiba spoke to Charles Holland; the architect and author of the new book ' How to Enjoy Architecture: A Guide for Everyone ' // Labour vows to build on the ‘grey-belt’ and deliver 1.5 million homes // Birmingham set to refuse controversial tower above a listed hospital // Scottish architects condemn the ditching of climate targets // And how can we look beyond the day-to-day familiarity...