Do you know someone whose house was featured on Grand Designs?

[Cocogreen]

I'd love to know how they found the experience, given the fact that building and renovating is so stressful - plus they have tv crews appearing every few months.
Were they REALLY happy with the finished house?
Or have you had one built near you? I'd like to hear the neighbour's opinions more on some of these projects.
Obviously I'm not asking precisely which house or what area you're in.
I'm in Aus and watch our local version of GD from time to time and know pretty well a lot of the areas where the houses have been built but haven't gone for a peek at them.

I loved the water treatment place, wonder if they are still together (off to google it)

themovemarket.com/tools/propertyprices/the-works-whaley-road-chesterfield-s44-6xe

www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/s44-6xe.html

www.pressreader.com/uk/the-daily-telegraph-property/20070714/281500746845151 Looks like they are still together and have a son now. (and sold the works a few years ago)

I've stayed in the sugar cube house in Bristol. It was really lovely but the family divorced quite soon after the show and my friend bought it from them.

They had a nightmare with the underfloor heating as the couple hadnt paid the builders properly and they'd filled the underfloor heating with sand in revenge, so it all had to be dug up and replaced by my friend. She's moved on since...

I met someone who rented a GD House. All glass and open plan, total fucking nightmare to live in with children so the owners moved out fairly quickly.

@Wbeezer

I know the artist couple who live in the huge barn conversion in Essex full of their collections of art and kitsch, it made Kevin's list of all time favourite builds. It's bonkers but very them.

Saw that one recently. The barn was huge. The cabinets were full of interesting stuff.

@choosername1234

I live close to the house in the cemetery. The designer / owner is still there as I see him occasionally when I'm walking past. However the underground swimming pool is available to hire for events so I'm guessing money must be tight

Is that the ex-army man who’s aunt(?) owned a huge stately home in Scotland? That was one of the best episodes ever.

Is that the ex-army man who’s aunt(?) owned a huge stately home in Scotland? That was one of the best episodes ever.

If I recall, he ran a fishing holiday company, so I guess things have been tough recently. Wasn’t his son at private, (boarding?) school? Is he still with his girlfriend?

It’s amazing how many of the grand design ‘forever homes’ got sold within a few years of being completed. I guess the owners are project people, and would get itchy feet if they didn’t have a new project to work on.

[quote SirChenjins]I loved the wooden house that the bloke who owned a wood built using traditional methods. He seemed so lovely and genuine, didn’t have much money at all to put into it and created the most beautiful house that fitted perfectly into its surroundings rather than some of the monstrosities on the programme that look like civic amenities and aren’t at all sympathetic to the area. It was so nice when they did the follow up to find out he’d got married to a woman with similar eco views and had kids - www.granddesignsmagazine.com/grand-designs-houses/ben-laws-wooden-house/[/quote]
This was one of my favourites too, along with the castle restoration in Yorkshire (where one of the internal walls collapsed as they were working on the build), and the waterworks one with the Minis for desks. I always look out for the Grand Designs house on the way in/ out of Kings Cross.

I prefer the earlier series, as they seem more relatable and within reach of ordinary people (just). The later ones with huge budgets just seem ridiculous compared to real life.

The enormous curtainless windows so many of these houses feature always perplex me. Completely understand the need for light and they must be special thick glass but no privacy or coziness.
One episode I loved was a couple ( artist and architect I think?) who build onto a little sixties bungalow, keeping the old living area as a snug area with fireplace. The new parts were beautiful but I think Kevin said the old part was his favourite part!

I’ve been binge watching this and I have to say the couple steam bent wood house in Cornwall was just gorgeous and such a lovely couple too.
Lighthouse man I can’t believe

Sorry completely missing rules of thread.
I think a grand designs thread for people like me who have not watched it before and recently discovered
Enjoying this thread

[quote callmeadoctor]www.housebeautiful.com/uk/lifestyle/property/a36343040/grand-designs-lighthouse-for-sale-croyde-north-devon/[/quote]
Ive just watched that one
I think it’s a hideous design and was a sad story
Destroyed a lovely home and family for that…

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor

Kevin Mc Dreamy did a question /answer thing on here years ago, it was really interesting.

I’d like to read that

An ex colleague was on Grand Designs Abroad in Peru. Kevin trekked in to the house on a donkey. In reality there is a motorway not far from the property.

I prefer the earlier series, as they seem more relatable and within reach of ordinary people (just). The later ones with huge budgets just seem ridiculous compared to real life

Me too! The earlier ones seemed to be more creative and realistic, the later ones were (in the main) soulless glass boxes with huge budgets.

I know someone who was on the very first series. His me and his wife are both v high profile architects though, so not a ‘normal’ build at all. They still live in the house.

He and his wife - sorry don’t know what happened there!

@Lipsandlashes

He and his wife - sorry don’t know what happened there!

I think you secretly want to live there too

@longtompot house is nice but not with him

The one in Dinton is near me. Regularly comes on the market but, when all is said and done it is a bit pokey, 2 bed detached with loads of stairs.
If I was 'that' type of vandal, I'd dress up in black one dark and gloomy night and respray their sign to say what it should say....'Dinton Folly'. It was built as a ruin, a folly to house the fossil collection from the owner of Dinton Hall. It is so pretentious and disrespectful of the history and locality to call it a castle. It really isn't.

I pass the ‘rusty house’ on the river in Lewes on my drive to work and raise my eyebrow every time - just why would you spend that much money for a house next to the A26 with the A27 in the background of your lovely river view?! Nice enough house if you like the glass box style but such an odd choice of location.

I live up the road from this one:

g.co/kgs/ryLE3o

I've still not forgiven them for the road closure because they totally forgot they would need utilities. Also, they bought the plot before seeing it. As a local it would not where have been my first choice.

Also it already looks run down.

In one of the early w, a young family were featured. But between the first and second meeting, the husband died leaving his wife and very young children. The project scale got cut and the tradesfolk appeared to be “helping out” as much as possible. Often think of that family - it was a beautiful, normal budget scale home.