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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think Grand Designs is an hour long stealth boast.

181 replies

mileend2bermondsey · 13/09/2015 10:25

I've never understood this programme. It's just an hour of, 'look how much money we have, look how great we are, watch us build a house which you could never afford to live in in your dreams peasants!' I can't stand to watch it because IMO it's just bragging. I can't even justify that perhaps they agree to do the show for money as most of them are rich as hell anyway (as shown by the houses they build).

My family say IABU but I can't be alone thinking this? Can I?

OP posts:
Sparklingbrook · 13/09/2015 13:24

60 minute makeover is awful too. Just for balance. Grin

Backforthis · 13/09/2015 13:24

There are beautiful kitchens that look very modest but you know don't come with prices in the brochure. Most of the Grand Designs houses have them. I've not noticed one that is 'flashy'. I have seen one when looking at houses near me that had blue up lighters running under the gloss black cabinets against neon green glass splash back. I really couldn't tell you what the kitchen layout.

wonkylegs · 13/09/2015 13:26

Honeyroar - don't speak to him in real life then as his linguistic skills are severely lacking. He spoke at an architectural dinner I went to and was awful, both in his speech and when he came over to chat afterwards. A real disappointment.
Good design doesn't have to cost a fortune but grand designs isn't necessarily good design - it's entertaining design, it's those over the top projects with different clients, things that go wrong and people who haven't really thought it through.
If you look at things like the RIBA small projects awards you can see amazing design that doesn't necessarily cost a fortune but doesn't make entertaining telly either.

Backforthis · 13/09/2015 13:26

Someone should bring back Changing Rooms for Channel 4 and E4 could have the couples in a studio to watch the show as it's broadcast and fight discuss it afterwards.

Chairmanofthebored · 13/09/2015 13:29

I do get fed up of all the property and lifestyle programmes in general. They over represent the wealthy middle class. I would love to see property shows where they have a budget of 150 grand for a family home, rather than half a million!
I fully admit though, I'm envious really. It's quite depressing as you could be mistaken for thinking people in this country are either well off middle classes or should feature on benefit street. I'm in neither camp and I expect a large percentage of the country aren't either.

Skiptonlass · 13/09/2015 13:32

I love grand designs! Especially the ones where they've rescued an old wreck or built something really awesome (I loved the guy who lived in the woods episode.) yes it has its pretentious moments and there have been a couple of truly awful people on it, but i think it's great.

So now a small confession...

We built our own house - don't hate me, it's very common to buy a bit of land where I live and build a house on it! It was very hard work but we were very fortunate to be able to do it.

It let us build a family house that was what we wanted and affordable (no way we could have afforded a family house in our city!) no white sofas, no acres of glass and no pretentious crap, I assure you. We did not spend 32k on an oven.

It was on time and under budget as well ;) and cost less than the average three bed in the South East, in case anyone thinks we are closet millionaires!

squoosh · 13/09/2015 13:34

I would love to see property shows where they have a budget of 150 grand for a family home, rather than half a million!

It's called the 100K House and it's on BBC2.

bettyberry · 13/09/2015 13:35

wonkylegs I'd find those small good design projects very entertaining. I love watching people build tiny homes. Such innovative use of material and space.

If anyone wants to see some great ideas look up the tiny home movement or this youtube channle. www.youtube.com/user/kirstendirksen

some very clever ideas in small spaces and lots of eco design in there. I don't love them all but taking little bits from each one I'd have a perfect house Grin

Saltedcaramel4 · 13/09/2015 13:35

I don't see it as bragging. I wouldn't consider living in most of the houses built on the show but I adore the design/build/journey aspect.

honeyroar · 13/09/2015 13:43

Sorry Wonkylegs, I meant his foreign language skills. No I can't imagine him as an inspiring after dinner speaker.

We're in the middle of a large renovation project on our house. It's been going five years and we've just finished one room of the four that need doing (two bedrooms a living room and the bathroom were ok so it's not all bad) The other three are piles of rubble and dust. So yeah I'm jealous, I must admit, of those that can afford to do it in a year!

HarrietVane99 · 13/09/2015 13:46

Alohamora, wasn't that the one where they found a stream running under the property when they began to dig out the basement? Kevin found the stream marked on a map, so I don't know how they or their surveyor missed it.

AnnieNon · 13/09/2015 13:47

I love GD. I don't see it as bragging. The people in it love their houses and are understandably excited and pleased for themselves. They can be a bit foolish but I think many of them are made to look worse than they actually are. The wobbly headed one loves to make a drama out of it.
Ages ago there was a couple who did up an old water treatment building (might have been a pumping station or something). They built it on time, within budget and without falling out with each other. The wobbly headed one was most dissapointed.

Preminstreltension · 13/09/2015 13:52

I loved the castle in Yorkshire that was a childhood dream of the owner. A real labour of love and the end result was just beautiful.

I could do without all the white glass boxes, including this week's ginormous one and the one where a couple built a small white box for architectural purity and then had to add on another white box a few years later when they realised it was just too small.

Oh and the one where they bought all the back gardens to build an underground swimming pool - that was Kentish Town which happens to have a rather beautiful brand new public pool about 200m away from the house.

TracyBarlow · 13/09/2015 14:10

Oh I loooooove Grand Designs. It's right up there in my best ever TV shows. We're self-builders but we build very normal family houses, live on site while building them then sell them and build a slightly bigger one the next time. It's the only way we're ever going to be able to have our own big house.

I think the guy on this week's show seemed like a massive control freak and God knows how he dealt with his children's chocolate handprints or piss on the floor.

I'm looking forward to when they revisit the one on the last series where the house was going to fall into the sea within 50, then 30, then 20 years. Then at the end a massive bit of the cliff just fell off. I'm guessing it'll be gone by the revisit. Grin

londonrach · 13/09/2015 14:13

I love the fact that having kevin visit you means every woman on the series seems to get pregnant. Grin.

Nanny0gg · 13/09/2015 14:21

My favourites

The house in the woods
The Hof house
The castle that was restored and is now a B&B
The house that looked like it was sailing on the loch
The French chateau that was used in the Resistance...

I'm sure there's more

SortedForCheeseAndFizz · 13/09/2015 14:29

having Kevin visit you means every woman on the series seems to get pregnant Grin That is so true!

One thing I notice is how similar most of the houses end up looking. Despite trying terribly hard to be original mostly everyone essentially ends up with the same Grand Designs House Confused. Ie a humungous public looking space that could be the foyer of a hotel or a bank.

gobbynorthernbird · 13/09/2015 14:38

Is Kevin the father of all the babies, or are the wives all having it off with the builders?

bettyberry · 13/09/2015 14:57

Is Kevin the father of all the babies, or are the wives all having it off with the builders?

Shock that's the true mean on 'grand designs' he trying to take over the world with mini-mes who live in identikit overpriced white boxes Grin

ChristineDePisan · 13/09/2015 15:00

I love GD, and Kevin. I would love a Huf House too.

I wish I had one of the magical sofas that miraculously produces the £300k shortfall necessary to finish the project Grin

Whatthefoxgoingon · 13/09/2015 15:16

I love GD and freely admit watching loads of it when we did our own house. I'd never go on the programme though, especially not after you lot of vipers have trashed it! Grin

WaggleBee · 13/09/2015 15:33

Why do they always get pregnant? Like that's what you need during a really stressful time whilst living in a car an in a field of mud, a new baby.

We been ttc for 8 years. Maybe I should just invite Kev to have a look at our new shed.

WaggleBee · 13/09/2015 15:34

*caravan

PennyPants · 13/09/2015 15:36

I love some of the houses, but I only watch the last 15 mins now, when it's all finished. A couple of houses never got finished because they ran out of money and I felt cheated Grin

godsavethequeeeen · 13/09/2015 15:56

The castle is Hellifield Peel castle and it seems they've got a smashing b&b business going now.

I must admit I do get a bit judgy when they make the houses so child unfriendly or with daft stairs someone can topple off.