0:00:02 > 0:00:04I've been picked up from airports in taxis before,
0:00:04 > 0:00:06but never had to go to a jetty to be picked up by boat.
0:00:10 > 0:00:14He's Piers Taylor, an award-winning architect.
0:00:14 > 0:00:19This building is so tactile and just rich materially.
0:00:19 > 0:00:20Woo-hoo-hoo!
0:00:20 > 0:00:22And she's Caroline Quentin,
0:00:22 > 0:00:25acclaimed actress and passionate property developer.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27Oh, I've been expecting you, Mr Bond!
0:00:27 > 0:00:29THEY LAUGH
0:00:29 > 0:00:31We've been given the keys
0:00:31 > 0:00:34to some of the most incredible houses in the world.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36It's chock full of surprises, isn't it?
0:00:36 > 0:00:38Ooh!
0:00:38 > 0:00:40To discover the design, innovation,
0:00:40 > 0:00:44passion and endurance needed to transform architectural vision
0:00:44 > 0:00:46into an extraordinary home.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49If this was Hollywood, I'd be snogging you now.
0:00:49 > 0:00:53Together, we'll be travelling the globe.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55- Oh, look down there!- I would, but I'm trying not to kill us.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57No. You look ahead!
0:00:57 > 0:01:00Meeting the architects and owners who have taken on the challenge of
0:01:00 > 0:01:04building unconventional homes in demanding locations.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07Just another day on the wing of a 747.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Whether it's navigating the logistics of constructing a house
0:01:11 > 0:01:13on top of a remote mountain...
0:01:13 > 0:01:18Why would you build a house where you can only get there by cable car?
0:01:18 > 0:01:21..negotiating the ancient trees of a fragile forest...
0:01:21 > 0:01:23You never see a building this close to the trees.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25I mean, that's six inches away.
0:01:25 > 0:01:30..having a sea view whilst perched on the edge of a dramatic coastal shoreline...
0:01:30 > 0:01:32I'd love to know how you actually built this
0:01:32 > 0:01:34on what appears to be a sort of vertical cliff face.
0:01:35 > 0:01:39..or excavating the earth to build a home deep underground.
0:01:39 > 0:01:41There is always a moment when you feel fear.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43Nature is never to come back the same way.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46No-one had ever built something like this before.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49It's a tightrope you walk. It can go spectacularly wrong.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Coastal living promises pure sea air,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05the constant sound of waves and ever-changing views of the sea.
0:02:08 > 0:02:12But building houses so close to the shore in remote locations can be
0:02:12 > 0:02:14fraught with challenges.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16When we were building this house,
0:02:16 > 0:02:19the two winters we hit was really, really bad.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22And they were building in these conditions?
0:02:22 > 0:02:24They tried to.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28Piers and I will be travelling from the windswept islands of Norway
0:02:28 > 0:02:32to the steep Mediterranean cliffs of southern Spain.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34This earth is basically scree, isn't it?
0:02:34 > 0:02:37- Exactly what it is. - There's nothing solid.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40And from the wild Atlantic Ocean of south-east Canada
0:02:40 > 0:02:43to the flooded coastal valleys of New Zealand.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46Discovering what it takes to design,
0:02:46 > 0:02:52build and live in some of the world's most extraordinary coastal homes.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54- So we'll see you in, what, six months?- Yeah.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56When the winter comes, come and get your keys!
0:02:56 > 0:02:58THEY LAUGH
0:03:02 > 0:03:05The first stop on our coastal adventure takes us to Norway
0:03:05 > 0:03:10and to a group of remote islands 200 miles south-west of the capital, Oslo.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20Although it's early summer now,
0:03:20 > 0:03:25temperatures in winter can drop as low as minus 20 in this Nordic archipelago.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Any house built on this windswept shoreline
0:03:27 > 0:03:31needs to be able to withstand everything Mother Nature can throw at it.
0:03:33 > 0:03:34Let's go.
0:03:39 > 0:03:44Our first extraordinary coastal home is a remote island retreat,
0:03:44 > 0:03:48camouflaged to blend into the surrounding landscape and designed
0:03:48 > 0:03:51as an antidote to the stresses of the owners' busy work schedules.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57The biggest challenge for the architect was how to create
0:03:57 > 0:04:00a four-bedroom home within the size restrictions of a pre-existing
0:04:00 > 0:04:04property, which had a footprint of just 100 square metres.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09Can you hear something?
0:04:09 > 0:04:12We're being picked up by owner Dag,
0:04:12 > 0:04:16who's the CEO of a large Norwegian shipping firm.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20He's invited Piers and I to spend the night in his family's remote holiday home.
0:04:22 > 0:04:24- Dag?- Dag?- Dag?
0:04:24 > 0:04:27He's not handsome at all, is he?
0:04:27 > 0:04:29Hello, how lovely to meet you!
0:04:29 > 0:04:30Caroline, lovely to meet you.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34- Great to meet you.- Shall I just hop straight on? Ooh, OK!
0:04:34 > 0:04:35Sure? Thank you. Wow!
0:04:35 > 0:04:38Ooh! That was taller than I thought!
0:04:39 > 0:04:40So exciting!
0:04:53 > 0:04:56Just in case you were wondering, as I was,
0:04:56 > 0:04:58Dag is married with three children.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03# Like I just got caught in a dream... #
0:05:03 > 0:05:06Although they live in the city of Kristiansand,
0:05:06 > 0:05:10the family escape on a 30-minute boat ride to their very own remote
0:05:10 > 0:05:13paradise island every weekend and throughout the summer.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19Dag, tell us how you even came to think about building a house on an island.
0:05:19 > 0:05:24As a kid, the parents of a friend of mine, they had a house on an island,
0:05:24 > 0:05:26so I'm kind of used to it.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28I enjoyed it a lot as a kid.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31And when we wanted a place for ourselves,
0:05:31 > 0:05:37we were looking for a place to have some privacy and enjoy the nature and scenery.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39And we also wanted a place where...
0:05:39 > 0:05:42that's sheltered from the wind.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45I have a sense also that the Norwegians celebrate summer
0:05:45 > 0:05:47because your winters are so harsh.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Yeah, that's true. We appreciate the good weather and the sun.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54- We do, too!- Yeah, yeah! We're with you on that one.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Are we nearly there? Cos I'm getting really excited.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59It's like five more minutes and we are there.
0:06:03 > 0:06:05There it is, there it is!
0:06:05 > 0:06:09Look! I love the way the roof is almost like part of the rock.
0:06:09 > 0:06:10It's so lovely.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16- The colours are great, aren't they? - They are.
0:06:17 > 0:06:18It's so discreet.
0:06:18 > 0:06:21Really discreet. I really like the way it's hunkered down.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Yeah, you can barely see it, actually.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33Oh! It's so beautiful.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Dag is leaving us marooned on this island for the next two days,
0:06:37 > 0:06:42so we can find out what it's really like to live in this secluded coastal home.
0:06:42 > 0:06:44You sure you don't want to stay this evening, Dag?
0:06:44 > 0:06:48It seems such a shame. We could open a bottle of wine and have a bit of a fish barbie.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50Thank you.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52Are you sure you don't want to stay, Dag?
0:06:52 > 0:06:54It seems a shame for you to go.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57OK, I'm going to pass you the key and I hope you enjoy it.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00- Really?- Thank you very much indeed.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02So we'll see you in, what, six months?
0:07:02 > 0:07:05- Yeah!- Something like that. - We'll go native.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08When the winter comes, come and get your keys!
0:07:08 > 0:07:11- Cheers. Bye.- Bye.- Bye.
0:07:13 > 0:07:14Bye!
0:07:16 > 0:07:17Right.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19You're off!
0:07:19 > 0:07:20SHE LAUGHS
0:07:20 > 0:07:22I've got the keys to this house!
0:07:32 > 0:07:36Already, I want to come in here and I want to take off my shoes,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38not because I have to - just because I want to
0:07:38 > 0:07:42cos I feel immediately at home here, which is fantastic.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46And what a relief to have a building that has such a difference in inside,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48inside but undercover, and then out here.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50Everything is about relating to the rocks.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53It really is. It really is. These spaces are delightful.
0:07:53 > 0:07:58And what's interesting is that it's a building that has been designed without an elevation as such.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02This is just a set of spaces that allow you to be next to the landscape
0:08:02 > 0:08:04and I love that, actually.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06It feels very special.
0:08:06 > 0:08:07It does. But this is still the house.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10And, actually, in England we think of the house as something
0:08:10 > 0:08:13that has walls and doors and windows, and you're either inside or outside.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16But here, this is still the house, really, isn't it?
0:08:16 > 0:08:20- Absolutely.- I think what's great about this is that this guy
0:08:20 > 0:08:22has clearly just looked at where the rocks are,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24where the spaces between the rocks are,
0:08:24 > 0:08:27and then he's covered bits of that, rather than thinking,
0:08:27 > 0:08:30"What's my house going to look like and where can I plonk it down?"
0:08:30 > 0:08:32Yeah. "I must get rid of things to make my house!"
0:08:32 > 0:08:34He's actually respected the landscape
0:08:34 > 0:08:36and built the house to fit in with the landscape.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38I love it from here, for instance.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40It's almost imperceptible.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47Building a house so close to the water on this protected rocky shoreline
0:08:47 > 0:08:50meant the architect had to abide by strict planning laws.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56The challenge was to create a four-bedroom home to fit within
0:08:56 > 0:09:02the 100-square-metre footprint of a 1960s cottage that previously stood on the site.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07This architect designed a low-lying one-storey building with an interior
0:09:07 > 0:09:11floor plan smaller than the size of a tennis court.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13To maximise the usable floor area,
0:09:13 > 0:09:17the internal living spaces of the house were split into two wings,
0:09:17 > 0:09:20connected by external corridors.
0:09:20 > 0:09:25A thick white concrete canopy stretches over both wings of the house
0:09:25 > 0:09:27and is bolted into the rocks,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30securely anchoring the house to this windswept site.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35Concrete was used as it can withstand the salty coastal atmosphere
0:09:35 > 0:09:40and weather over time to blend in with the surrounding rocky landscape.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44- The house and the rock, I mean, they are sort of as one, aren't they, really?- They really are.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47And even though those bits of timber are very vertical,
0:09:47 > 0:09:51they still feel like a bit of landscape.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53With limited internal floor space,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56the architect made clever use of the outside space.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02This is the bedroom bit.
0:10:02 > 0:10:07And what's brilliant about this is that, because there is no wall here,
0:10:07 > 0:10:11this corridor - ostensibly, this corridor space -
0:10:11 > 0:10:13isn't counted in the overall metreage of the house,
0:10:13 > 0:10:17so you can use that space inside the house where it's needed,
0:10:17 > 0:10:21and this is open to this beautiful vista.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25There is one main bedroom downstairs.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28One here. Two here?
0:10:28 > 0:10:31Yeah, another one. You've got a double bunk bed down the bottom here
0:10:31 > 0:10:33and then a single up here.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37There is a discretion about all these bedrooms.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40They look the same but they're not,
0:10:40 > 0:10:43because this is the nicest one...
0:10:43 > 0:10:46and it's mine! You snooze, you lose.
0:10:51 > 0:10:56What's extraordinary about this house is that what you have
0:10:56 > 0:10:59is a cross-section of a rock formation like this,
0:10:59 > 0:11:02and many people would level that and put a big building down there.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06But what this guy has done is just carve this as delicately as possible,
0:11:06 > 0:11:11and then delicately fill in a little bit of that with a bit of a building,
0:11:11 > 0:11:16and leave one bit completely open, so that you get views through that.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20And I think that's a really beautiful way to make a building.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23And it's a building that doesn't try and compete with landscape,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26it doesn't apologise for landscape.
0:11:26 > 0:11:32But, at the same time, it's a beautiful, delicate thing that sits there.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34And, really, that's the building.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41The man responsible for this coastal home is Sven Lund,
0:11:41 > 0:11:45an award-winning Norwegian architect based in Oslo.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51Tell me what Dag and Rine's brief to you was initially.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55They wanted a house which fitted into landscape.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58That's our main goal. We had to be very careful.
0:11:58 > 0:12:04Careful in the way that it was a part of the terrain rather than sticking out.
0:12:04 > 0:12:10This is a really harsh climate and it's also on a remote island.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13Tell me about building this house.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15Exactly when we were building this house,
0:12:15 > 0:12:19the two winters we hit was really, really bad.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22- They were very, very cold. - This looks pretty extreme.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24This looks like pack ice, sea ice.
0:12:24 > 0:12:29Yeah. The island was almost impossible to get to, or get away from.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31And if you see, this picture in front of you -
0:12:31 > 0:12:34it says something about the conditions.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37As well as battling one of the worst winters on record,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41the builders were limited to just seven hours of daylight.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43And they were building in these conditions?
0:12:43 > 0:12:46- They tried to.- But what about getting materials to this site?
0:12:46 > 0:12:52- The concrete arrived here on a truck on a barge.- Really?
0:12:52 > 0:12:54It was towed by a boat, yeah.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57How long did it take to build, given the extreme weather?
0:12:57 > 0:13:00A bit more than one and a half years.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03It's quite a long time for a house that is about 100 square metres.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06Yeah. I think we started at the wrong time of the year, in the winter!
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Building through the winter is challenging even in the UK,
0:13:12 > 0:13:14but Sven was determined to finish the house
0:13:14 > 0:13:18so that the family could make the most of the precious summer months.
0:13:18 > 0:13:19That's pretty good.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27Oh, look at that!
0:13:27 > 0:13:31Even though the water temperature is a chilly eight degrees,
0:13:31 > 0:13:34Piers and I can't resist a quick dip while the barbecue heats up.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42You know, it's one of the first houses I've been that doesn't just
0:13:42 > 0:13:45complement the landscape, it actually makes it better.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47- Yeah!- Do you know what I mean? - I absolutely do.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48And how rare is that?
0:13:54 > 0:13:57Increasingly, I'm starting to realise that what's important about
0:13:57 > 0:14:01a good house is the atmosphere - about how it functions.
0:14:01 > 0:14:06A house like this, the minute you're here, you start to relax
0:14:06 > 0:14:08and enjoy spending time here
0:14:08 > 0:14:14and, of course, it doesn't hurt that the scenery is absolutely beautiful...
0:14:14 > 0:14:15even without Dag.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21Piers, come and get this! It's ready!
0:14:21 > 0:14:23He's not Norwegian, is he?
0:14:26 > 0:14:29- Ah, yes. That's good. - Oh, look at that!
0:14:32 > 0:14:34This house obviously cost a lot of money,
0:14:34 > 0:14:39but what it gives you is something that's completely priceless,
0:14:39 > 0:14:41that's beyond style.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44It's just about this way that we can live in this extraordinary landscape
0:14:44 > 0:14:47with these rocks right here coming into the house,
0:14:47 > 0:14:51and the sea lapping at the rocks just there.
0:14:51 > 0:14:52I mean, it's extraordinary.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54And it wouldn't do you any harm, would it,
0:14:54 > 0:14:56to wake up every day to such a beautiful building?
0:14:56 > 0:15:00It would do you a lot of good to wake up to such a beautiful building.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02In a way, I'm selling the building short because I'm talking about
0:15:02 > 0:15:05the landscape and the rocks and the light and the water,
0:15:05 > 0:15:10but actually it's the building that has judged perfectly
0:15:10 > 0:15:15how much architecture to do and how little,
0:15:15 > 0:15:17and where to make a move and where not.
0:15:27 > 0:15:29After a peaceful night's sleep,
0:15:29 > 0:15:33Piers and I are making the most of outdoor living on this remote island.
0:15:44 > 0:15:49Usually we're just locked away in a horrible little sealed cubicle,
0:15:49 > 0:15:50away from the elements.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52But being out here IN the elements,
0:15:52 > 0:15:58it feels like I'm just standing under the most beautiful warm waterfall out in these rocks.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00And this is just an everyday experience in this house.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06Dashing Dag is tied up with business on the mainland,
0:16:06 > 0:16:09but his wife, clothes shop owner Renee,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12is popping by to see how we're getting on.
0:16:12 > 0:16:13It's a stylish entrance!
0:16:14 > 0:16:16Hi!
0:16:16 > 0:16:18- Hello!- Hi, Caroline.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20- Lovely to meet you. - Nice to meet you, too.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22Lovely to meet you.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25- Shall we sit slightly out of the wind?- Yeah.- Cos it's quite breezy, isn't it?
0:16:26 > 0:16:30It's such a beautiful place. How on earth did you find it?
0:16:30 > 0:16:32It was winter and we were just out in the boat,
0:16:32 > 0:16:36and then, when we came around in here to have a look at this place,
0:16:36 > 0:16:40it was like, I think January, and it was really cold.
0:16:40 > 0:16:44But it was totally clear, it was no wind.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46The water was like completely still.
0:16:46 > 0:16:49- Even in the winter? - Yes. It was amazing.
0:16:49 > 0:16:54We just fell - I think we fell in love with the place immediately.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57Any moments when you thought, "We've taken on too much"?
0:16:57 > 0:17:01Cos although it's very discreet, it's quite a big ask, this,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04isn't it, not to interfere with the landscape?
0:17:04 > 0:17:09No, I feel very comfortable about the whole process, yeah,
0:17:09 > 0:17:10and the building and everything.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12Do you spend a lot of time here?
0:17:12 > 0:17:14Yeah, we live here all summer.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17So is this an escape for you to come here?
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Yeah. It's very, like, relaxing.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23It sort of gives you some time off
0:17:23 > 0:17:26because both my husband and I work quite a bit.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29And it just gives you that,
0:17:29 > 0:17:34you know, quality time with the kids and as a family.
0:17:34 > 0:17:38You've actually created something perfect for your family.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40Yeah.
0:17:49 > 0:17:54Some houses are really good, Caroline, but this one was extraordinary.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58And I think, well, I don't really want to go, actually.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00It's certainly one of the best houses we've seen, isn't it?
0:18:00 > 0:18:02Definitely.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05I think it was...extraordinary
0:18:05 > 0:18:10in that it just felt so much part of this landscape.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14And I think...I think what surprised me is that when I got here...
0:18:14 > 0:18:17I really don't want to go, Piers! I really don't want to go.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19I just wasn't so sure.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22And then, as soon as I really experienced it...
0:18:22 > 0:18:24Now...where's Dag?
0:18:26 > 0:18:27Oh, Dag!
0:18:27 > 0:18:29I think we should stay, actually.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31What about you, Caroline?
0:18:39 > 0:18:42The next leg of our journey to discover some of the world's most
0:18:42 > 0:18:46extraordinary coastal homes takes us to southern Spain.
0:18:55 > 0:19:00We're heading to an unconventional home built into a steep cliff face
0:19:00 > 0:19:05on a 42-degree incline overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08SHE SPEAKS SPANISH
0:19:08 > 0:19:11- ..cliff house!- I think this is the road to the cliff house.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13- This is the road.- Let's hope it is.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17The plot is just the face of a cliff.
0:19:17 > 0:19:18That's right.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22But building a house on a cliff of crumbling rock and soil
0:19:22 > 0:19:25was no mean feat and required clever engineering
0:19:25 > 0:19:28to prevent it from falling into the sea below.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33We shouldn't tell each other what we think about this house.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36We should look separately and then we should meet up,
0:19:36 > 0:19:39cos I don't want to be influenced by you and I don't want you to be
0:19:39 > 0:19:42influenced by me because I think this is going to be a rather weird one.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45- You're just not interested in what I've got to say, are you?- Yeah!
0:19:45 > 0:19:47Just go off and look at it by yourself!
0:19:47 > 0:19:50- All right, OK!- I thought I'd got away with that!
0:19:50 > 0:19:55- Are you sure this is right? - No, I'm not actually, darling. - I'm sure it is.- Oh!
0:19:58 > 0:20:00Don't say anything! Don't speak!
0:20:00 > 0:20:02I know you are dying to say something!
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Don't speak! Don't speak.
0:20:04 > 0:20:10- Don't speak, don't speak. - Not a single adjective?- No.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13THEY LAUGH
0:20:15 > 0:20:18The challenge facing the architects was to build a house on this steep
0:20:18 > 0:20:22slope, which would integrate with the surrounding landscape,
0:20:22 > 0:20:26yet at the same time direct all the liveable spaces towards the sea.
0:20:38 > 0:20:40Look at it and don't say anything.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49SHE LAUGHS
0:20:49 > 0:20:54This unusual three-bedroom holiday home buried deep into the cliff face
0:20:54 > 0:20:55consists of two floors.
0:20:57 > 0:21:03On the ground floor, a large open plan living area follows the angle of the steep slope
0:21:03 > 0:21:06and is connected to a cantilever terrace with a swimming pool.
0:21:08 > 0:21:09On the second floor,
0:21:09 > 0:21:12all the bedrooms have uninterrupted views above the roof,
0:21:12 > 0:21:14looking out to the sea.
0:21:16 > 0:21:23The 150-square-metre living space is covered by a curved double shell roof of reinforced concrete,
0:21:23 > 0:21:27which frames the view and orientates the airflow that comes from the sea
0:21:27 > 0:21:29into the interior spaces.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33SHE CHUCKLES
0:21:33 > 0:21:35If you were a little boy,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38what would you put at the top of the stairs if you were hot?
0:21:38 > 0:21:40You'd put a pool, wouldn't you?
0:21:40 > 0:21:43And that's exactly what they've done, and then it opens out
0:21:43 > 0:21:44into this extraordinary thing!
0:21:44 > 0:21:49SHE LAUGHS
0:21:49 > 0:21:53It's unbelievable. What is going on? What are these?
0:21:53 > 0:21:56What the...? What are these?
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Oh, my Lord!
0:21:58 > 0:22:00SHE LAUGHS
0:22:00 > 0:22:05This is comedy. It's like an Austin Powers movie set.
0:22:05 > 0:22:07God, what a view, though.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09What a view!
0:22:14 > 0:22:19The couple who own this house found the challenging cliff-side plot
0:22:19 > 0:22:22and fell in love with it immediately.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26Aware of both the difficulties of the location and its potential,
0:22:26 > 0:22:31they asked several architect companies to come up with a contemporary design.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35The winning pitch was from two young Spanish architects,
0:22:35 > 0:22:38who embraced the challenge of building a house on such a tricky site.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44They came up with a design, which promised a large column-free
0:22:44 > 0:22:49living space, which would provide uninterrupted views of the sea.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52I wonder what my serious architect chum is making of it.
0:22:54 > 0:22:55Looking at the cliff-side
0:22:55 > 0:23:00and looking at how ordinary most things are here, the sheer ambition,
0:23:00 > 0:23:04the sheer creative ambition to want to do something that is unlike
0:23:04 > 0:23:07anything else here, I think is brilliant.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23I think it's really playful and funny
0:23:23 > 0:23:26and, you know... And it's extraordinary.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28You know, I love all this. This is great.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30I mean, what a great space to move around in and, you know...
0:23:30 > 0:23:32I mean, have you been up here? This is extraordinary.
0:23:32 > 0:23:36Why wouldn't you...? I think I'd put a slide right down there
0:23:36 > 0:23:38into a massive pool, if you're going to go mad.
0:23:38 > 0:23:39And it feels so young.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42I mean, really, only a young architect can do this with the floors
0:23:42 > 0:23:46and be prepared to push everything as far as it can go.
0:23:46 > 0:23:48The only thing that I think anyone would say,
0:23:48 > 0:23:51"Ah, yeah, that's a little bit like my home," is the kitchen space.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57This open plan living area has a Gaudiesque ceiling
0:23:57 > 0:24:00and unusual bespoke features.
0:24:01 > 0:24:04THEY LAUGH
0:24:04 > 0:24:08We look like the king and queen of the oyster house.
0:24:08 > 0:24:13The layout of the living space has been precisely dictated by the design.
0:24:13 > 0:24:15The kitchen has a defined dining area,
0:24:15 > 0:24:20where the table legs have been fixed rigid into position on the floor.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22It's about the architect controlling their vision at all costs.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24Does that ever happen with architects?
0:24:24 > 0:24:26- Oh, absolutely. Completely.- Oh, I didn't know that.- Completely.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29- I mean, it's all about protecting... - Controlling architect?
0:24:29 > 0:24:32..protecting your vision from a client that wants to meddle and interfere.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35Yet, ultimately, this open plan living area
0:24:35 > 0:24:39has been cleverly designed to make the most of main attraction.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45- Let's go see upstairs. - Looking forward to it!
0:24:51 > 0:24:56So this is the pile that's stopping the whole house tipping into the sea
0:24:56 > 0:24:59because what happens is the other end of this is anchored somewhere
0:24:59 > 0:25:02in the cliff face, and then the wall is built,
0:25:02 > 0:25:08and then this plate is screwed down to stop it moving.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10It's kind beautiful, actually.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15Ooh! Look at that.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19I bet Piers has talked about that.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21Whatever he says, it's probably right.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24It's actually really nice being up here,
0:25:24 > 0:25:26right under the back part of the roof,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29and seeing through that tiny little window up there,
0:25:29 > 0:25:31the top bit of landscape.
0:25:31 > 0:25:37And, from here, you can read the way the cliff goes all the way down to the sea.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41- Hi, Caroline.- Hi. It's lovely, isn't it?- It is.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44You very rarely get a view of a roof...
0:25:45 > 0:25:46- ..of your own house.- Yeah.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48It's like an animal skin.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52It is. It's very prehistoric - a slumbering dinosaur.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54- Yeah.- It's lovely from up here,
0:25:54 > 0:25:56looking all the way along this bit of the coast
0:25:56 > 0:26:01and really understanding why people have been drawn here for thousands of years.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04Because I think everything's better by the water, isn't it?
0:26:04 > 0:26:08- This house just celebrates it, really, doesn't it?- Yeah.
0:26:08 > 0:26:14The architects responsible for this coastal home are Jaime Bartolome and Pablo Gil.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17So you won this at competition, didn't you?
0:26:17 > 0:26:22Yeah. Well, the client asked a number of architects to do, like,
0:26:22 > 0:26:25a preliminary design of the house.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28Were you taking a bit of a risk to get yourselves noticed in this competition?
0:26:28 > 0:26:32Well, definitely noticed for the client so we could get the commission.
0:26:32 > 0:26:36But basically, I think what he really liked was that, from the interior,
0:26:36 > 0:26:37he could have all these views,
0:26:37 > 0:26:41and it was so open and the roof would play with that as well.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45And, you know, like, these kind of different spaces.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49The roof was the most complex element of the design.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53The handcrafted metal framework was built by a local blacksmith.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56This malleable material is what supports the concrete
0:26:56 > 0:26:58and gives it its unique shape.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03It's structurally supported by thick retaining external walls,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06so there's no need for pillars to interrupt the views.
0:27:07 > 0:27:08I'm fascinated by the structure
0:27:08 > 0:27:12and I'd love to know a bit more about how you actually built this,
0:27:12 > 0:27:15on what appears to me to be a sort of vertical cliff face,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18so can we go and have a look outside and show me how you did it?
0:27:18 > 0:27:20- Sure. Yeah.- We'll see you in a minute.
0:27:20 > 0:27:25A large portion of the building budget was spent on the foundations for this house.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27And looking at the poor condition of the soil here,
0:27:27 > 0:27:29it's easy to see why.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36Because this earth is basically, it's, I mean, it's...
0:27:36 > 0:27:38- Yeah, it's the same. - It's just scree, isn't it?
0:27:38 > 0:27:40Exactly what it is, yeah.
0:27:40 > 0:27:41- That's all it is, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45There's nothing here, there's nothing solid underneath.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47How do you go about building?
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Do you have to dig it out?
0:27:49 > 0:27:54Yeah, you basically start digging and start building at the same time.
0:27:54 > 0:28:00It was also difficult because you couldn't build the whole thing like a house is done,
0:28:00 > 0:28:01from the bottom to the top.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05You had to build it from the top to the bottom because, otherwise,
0:28:05 > 0:28:07the whole thing would fall into you,
0:28:07 > 0:28:10onto the workers, while the site was being built.
0:28:10 > 0:28:11Yeah, massive problem.
0:28:11 > 0:28:12So that was the main issue, so...
0:28:12 > 0:28:15You go in steps, and then through that way,
0:28:15 > 0:28:19you end up with what I can show you on the photograph, like a...
0:28:19 > 0:28:21- Oh, yeah, please.- ..a huge void.
0:28:21 > 0:28:23This is the site as it was before.
0:28:23 > 0:28:27And then here, what happens is that you have already built the upper part.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29- I see!- And then you have taken a bit off it.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32And then you keep building down.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35So, and then you put another wall here, and then make another...
0:28:35 > 0:28:38- Yeah.- ..inroad into that bit.- Yeah.
0:28:38 > 0:28:40Alongside the giant anchors,
0:28:40 > 0:28:43the house was secured to the cliff face using a micropile system.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49This involves driving steel rods 16 metres deep into the ground
0:28:49 > 0:28:51to give it a secure foundation.
0:28:52 > 0:28:57For a first major project for two relatively young architects,
0:28:57 > 0:29:00did you learn a lot about that client-architect relationship?
0:29:00 > 0:29:02Having the client have that vision
0:29:02 > 0:29:04and making sure that the rest of the team,
0:29:04 > 0:29:08the architects and then on the building site etc,
0:29:08 > 0:29:10everybody has the vision and goes for it.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13I think, in that sense, the client was really helpful.
0:29:13 > 0:29:17This intricate roof is made up of handmade zinc tiles,
0:29:17 > 0:29:21which give it a unique texture and appearance.
0:29:21 > 0:29:25We bought the raw material from Asturias in the north of Spain,
0:29:25 > 0:29:28- a tonne of zinc, very cheap because it's not...- Not processed.
0:29:28 > 0:29:29It's just a raw material.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32We transported it to a small town in Spain,
0:29:32 > 0:29:35people who worked the metal very well.
0:29:35 > 0:29:39We have worked with them many times and they cut it and made the scales.
0:29:39 > 0:29:40- Yeah.- They brought it here.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44- Yeah.- At that time, we had trained the construction workers
0:29:44 > 0:29:48and then this whole thing was built in three weeks.
0:29:48 > 0:29:49- Wow.- So...
0:29:49 > 0:29:51Just like the roof's structure,
0:29:51 > 0:29:55the story behind these tiles is one of craftsmanship, using local labour.
0:29:56 > 0:30:02Manual labour, which has been thought of as something that makes the building more expensive,
0:30:02 > 0:30:05we have found that it's not necessarily like that.
0:30:05 > 0:30:08It was kind of a huge surprise for us as well.
0:30:08 > 0:30:12With local labour, using methods of construction of this area,
0:30:12 > 0:30:17we have demonstrated that it's able to...we are able to produce
0:30:17 > 0:30:20a great piece of architecture, I think, for the same cost,
0:30:20 > 0:30:22and with much better value for the user.
0:30:22 > 0:30:27And it's a pity that this doesn't happen in every mile of the coast of Spain, which is a disaster!
0:30:27 > 0:30:29Do you think, next time we come back,
0:30:29 > 0:30:33will we see this whole hillside littered with amazing buildings?
0:30:33 > 0:30:36We could say goodbye to the square boxes of the Costa Del Sol.
0:30:36 > 0:30:40- Hopefully. I'm sure people are going to be interested in doing something else.- Challenging it.
0:30:40 > 0:30:43Yeah. When they know it's feasible,
0:30:43 > 0:30:45it's durable and it can be done, so...
0:30:45 > 0:30:47- Well, you've done it. Thank you. - We've done it!
0:30:47 > 0:30:49THEY LAUGH
0:30:53 > 0:30:56What's great about it this is that it really could set a precedent
0:30:56 > 0:31:00about how to build beautifully and appropriately along this coast.
0:31:00 > 0:31:03- Hope it changes things.- It should do, shouldn't it?- Yeah, definitely.
0:31:05 > 0:31:07- Not a bad life, is it? - Not bad at all.
0:31:07 > 0:31:09- We are lucky, aren't we?- Yeah.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15- It's bloody freezing, isn't it? Let's get out.- It is freezing!
0:31:15 > 0:31:18HE LAUGHS
0:31:27 > 0:31:31Our next coastal home takes us to the other side of the world.
0:31:41 > 0:31:46We're in Marlborough Sounds at the northern tip of New Zealand's South Island.
0:31:46 > 0:31:50This ancient waterway was formed when sea levels rose
0:31:50 > 0:31:55and drowned a series of deep valleys after the last ice age, around 10,000 years ago.
0:31:57 > 0:32:00The result is an abundance of remote bays and coves,
0:32:00 > 0:32:05and it was this coastal scenery that inspired the owner of our next house
0:32:05 > 0:32:09to build a secluded retreat as an escape from his busy working life.
0:32:11 > 0:32:16What an incredible thing to build a house at the end of this sea journey.
0:32:18 > 0:32:22The challenge for the architect was to design a house which would sit on
0:32:22 > 0:32:26a narrow strip of land between the shore and protected bushland.
0:32:28 > 0:32:31The easiest way to access this house is by boat.
0:32:33 > 0:32:36It's extraordinary. I'm blown away by how beautiful this is.
0:32:36 > 0:32:40But the house has to be as good as this boat ride.
0:32:41 > 0:32:43It's got a lot to live up to, hasn't it?
0:32:48 > 0:32:51But it's quite a dramatic entrance, isn't it?
0:32:51 > 0:32:54Waterfall just there, which you can probably hear all the time, actually.
0:33:05 > 0:33:09It's just idyllic for me, this.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12Right in the middle of a forest, right on the water.
0:33:12 > 0:33:14Probably the cleanest sea water in the world.
0:33:17 > 0:33:18Oh, thank you.
0:33:20 > 0:33:26What I love is this sensory experience of being in landscape
0:33:26 > 0:33:28and not seeing a big house anywhere.
0:33:28 > 0:33:32There's something very delicate, almost hiding, behind these trees.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35We could be walking through a garden in the 18th century.
0:33:35 > 0:33:39Everything's so beautiful and mysterious and scented and voluptuous.
0:33:39 > 0:33:42- And that's just me! - THEY LAUGH
0:33:42 > 0:33:45I like this entrance very much. Do you?
0:33:45 > 0:33:49It's lovely being in the trees and looking down at the water.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53This entire house was built out of recycled reclaimed hardwoods.
0:33:53 > 0:33:54And there they are.
0:33:54 > 0:33:59Jarrah, in fact, which is very red and incredibly dense.
0:33:59 > 0:34:02Is that the wood that's so hard you can't drill it with a wood drill,
0:34:02 > 0:34:04you have to use a metal drill?
0:34:04 > 0:34:07- That's right.- Is it that one?- Yeah. Ironbark, or something, they call it.
0:34:07 > 0:34:10- Oh, brilliant.- What makes me so suspicious of so much contemporary
0:34:10 > 0:34:14architecture is that the architecture dominates and life is banished,
0:34:14 > 0:34:16but here it's the other way round.
0:34:17 > 0:34:19- It's all about living here, isn't it?- It's all about living.
0:34:19 > 0:34:21Living in the beautiful space.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29This three-bedroom house has been carefully designed over two floors
0:34:29 > 0:34:33to fit on a narrow strip of land between the hillside and the sea.
0:34:35 > 0:34:40Two separate wooden-clad structures divide the house into different zones.
0:34:41 > 0:34:45One is a living space, with a large dining room and kitchen area,
0:34:45 > 0:34:46with guest rooms below.
0:34:48 > 0:34:49The other is the master bedroom,
0:34:49 > 0:34:53which is held aloft by a series of hardwood timbers that give
0:34:53 > 0:34:55a sense of floating above the trees and water.
0:34:58 > 0:35:02A glazed bridge corridor through the trees links the main bedroom
0:35:02 > 0:35:03to the rest of the house.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09Oh! SHE LAUGHS
0:35:26 > 0:35:28Piers!
0:35:28 > 0:35:30Isn't that water beautiful?
0:35:30 > 0:35:34This takes me back about 30 years, to when I was a student in Sydney,
0:35:34 > 0:35:36because it's so Antipodean,
0:35:36 > 0:35:40this bluey green water with the light on it
0:35:40 > 0:35:43and untouched bushland around it.
0:35:43 > 0:35:48And for all the abstract pleasures of landscape and place and beauty,
0:35:48 > 0:35:52actually, this is a really rich and interesting home,
0:35:52 > 0:35:54where someone really lives here!
0:35:54 > 0:35:59They do, and with so many beautiful things and with all this wonderful, rich wood.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02And then, as you say, that peacock-blue water.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06While the weather's good, I'm going to just explore outside,
0:36:06 > 0:36:08get my bearings and just see how it all fits together
0:36:08 > 0:36:11and leave you in here to explore. There's lots to explore!
0:36:11 > 0:36:15There certainly is. I'm going to have a little beak.
0:36:15 > 0:36:20Nearly all of the hardwood timbers that support this house are reclaimed,
0:36:20 > 0:36:23including the ironbark columns which prop up the master bedroom.
0:36:25 > 0:36:27They were rescued from old railway bridges
0:36:27 > 0:36:31and transported to this remote location by barge,
0:36:31 > 0:36:33along with the glass windows and cedar cladding
0:36:33 > 0:36:36which nestle this building into the landscape.
0:36:36 > 0:36:40I really wanted to come back down to the boat to see the house from where
0:36:40 > 0:36:43I first arrived, to make sense of it again,
0:36:43 > 0:36:44because, when you're up close,
0:36:44 > 0:36:49it's a building that doesn't really tell you how it's organised.
0:36:49 > 0:36:53Because you're so immersed in just that experience of being in the trees
0:36:53 > 0:36:55with that incredible view of the water.
0:36:55 > 0:36:57But from here, it is a very simple building.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01Constructionally, this house is really just like one of these piers.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05What there are, these uprights,
0:37:05 > 0:37:08there are some big, chunky bits of timber
0:37:08 > 0:37:14and then everything else is a simple bit of beam with some tension wire
0:37:14 > 0:37:18and then it's filled in and, really, that's it.
0:37:18 > 0:37:21What's wonderful about this house is it's very unshowy,
0:37:21 > 0:37:24very straightforward and it's done brilliantly.
0:37:26 > 0:37:30Once you leave the entertaining space of the kitchen and the dining area,
0:37:30 > 0:37:33you go to the bedroom via this green corridor,
0:37:33 > 0:37:39so there's glass and pushing up against the glass is the forest canopy.
0:37:39 > 0:37:44It's rainforest here. It's like being in a terrarium.
0:37:44 > 0:37:45Oh!
0:37:46 > 0:37:50This is one sexy...
0:37:51 > 0:37:53..sexy bathroom.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56Look at this tub. Oh!
0:37:56 > 0:37:59This guy's working life is...
0:37:59 > 0:38:01To say high-powered doesn't really cover it -
0:38:01 > 0:38:04he is a world famous cinematographer.
0:38:04 > 0:38:09He's worked on some of the best films ever made.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12I don't know if you know Midnight Express.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15Ring any bells? Bugsy Malone?
0:38:15 > 0:38:16Ring any bells?
0:38:16 > 0:38:19Gravity? Planet Of The Apes?
0:38:19 > 0:38:23Harry Potter? Heard of him at all?
0:38:23 > 0:38:24This guy shot that.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28And with all that comes a huge amount of stress,
0:38:28 > 0:38:33so where better to come and unwind and get back in touch with nature?
0:38:35 > 0:38:40And the real things in life - wood and greenery...
0:38:40 > 0:38:41and the water!
0:38:43 > 0:38:45- Piers?- Yeah!- Are you there?
0:38:45 > 0:38:47Hello, love!
0:38:47 > 0:38:51I drifted off. I was in a dreamlike state of just sensory bliss.
0:38:51 > 0:38:55It is! That's exactly what it's like. It's dreamlike.
0:38:55 > 0:38:58What's great about the architecture is that it's taken a back seat.
0:38:58 > 0:39:01It doesn't disappear completely - there is still a building here,
0:39:01 > 0:39:05but actually, what the building never does is stop you being
0:39:05 > 0:39:11immersed in this place, immersed in the dappled light, immersed in that turquoise water.
0:39:11 > 0:39:16I'm not sure I've ever been somewhere that's so intertwined
0:39:16 > 0:39:18with nature and that verdant bushland.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21It's about living in the moment, this house, isn't it?
0:39:21 > 0:39:22Yeah. And it changes.
0:39:22 > 0:39:27The light changes faster than anywhere I've been as it moves
0:39:27 > 0:39:29through this canopy.
0:39:29 > 0:39:32And, of course, the light would have been incredibly important
0:39:32 > 0:39:34for him as a cinematographer.
0:39:34 > 0:39:39Homeowner Michael Saracen was closely involved with the design of this house
0:39:39 > 0:39:44and entrusted local builder David Keeps to execute his precise vision.
0:39:44 > 0:39:47I never built a house, I didn't have a clue about how to do it.
0:39:47 > 0:39:49You know, film sets is all I know about.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52I go on there and say, "When's it going to be ready? When can I light it?"
0:39:52 > 0:39:55But I think your visual sense, I mean,
0:39:55 > 0:39:57I know you're kind of making light of it,
0:39:57 > 0:40:00but actually your visual sense is...
0:40:00 > 0:40:02it's deeply rooted in this property.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05I mean, the use of light - it delivers.
0:40:05 > 0:40:09Why did you look for this incredible piece of land in the first place?
0:40:09 > 0:40:11I came out once from the States,
0:40:11 > 0:40:14looked at something which was further up the Sounds
0:40:14 > 0:40:17and then I heard about this one, which is 75 acres, the light was nice,
0:40:17 > 0:40:20and faces north so we had sun most of the day.
0:40:20 > 0:40:24I also loved that we could build close to the water.
0:40:24 > 0:40:26I also love that we have a waterfall.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28- Yeah.- So you've sort of got it in front of you and behind you.
0:40:28 > 0:40:30And just stuff fell into place.
0:40:30 > 0:40:34There was something quite organic, I guess.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37So it was an immediate sort of response to the land and the light, was it?
0:40:37 > 0:40:39Yeah. Yeah.
0:40:39 > 0:40:47Michael is dogmatic about beauty, so, as the builder, you either say,
0:40:47 > 0:40:55"I'm going to bust my gut to try and interpret what this guy means by beauty."
0:40:55 > 0:40:59I came to the conclusion that I was better to ignore that
0:40:59 > 0:41:03and fortuitously, I think, our tastes coalesce somewhat.
0:41:03 > 0:41:04Yeah, no, absolutely.
0:41:04 > 0:41:08This house is all about reclaimed wood and the use of wood
0:41:08 > 0:41:11and, actually, I have seen lots of reclaimed things around here.
0:41:11 > 0:41:13All the hardwood is recycled.
0:41:13 > 0:41:15I'm reclaimed!
0:41:16 > 0:41:18I also like the sort of...its age.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22I thought, "Why not have the house sort of constructed with old stuff which has some history?"
0:41:22 > 0:41:25Well, I think that's what, I mean,
0:41:25 > 0:41:27you get a real sense of that when you walk in.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29It's a contemporary house,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32but it already has personality and life
0:41:32 > 0:41:37and you feel that it's had lots of areas and had lots of life before.
0:41:37 > 0:41:40The thing is, you throw away the spirit level on a job like this.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42The house is like a work of art.
0:41:42 > 0:41:44It's like an installation in an art gallery.
0:41:44 > 0:41:49The workings of the house are secondary to that primary goal
0:41:49 > 0:41:52of surrounding oneself with beauty.
0:41:53 > 0:41:57This aesthetic was extended to the relationship the house
0:41:57 > 0:41:59has to the natural environment.
0:41:59 > 0:42:02Preserving the beauty of the landscape that surrounded his waterside home
0:42:02 > 0:42:04was paramount to Michael.
0:42:05 > 0:42:07This came with its own problems,
0:42:07 > 0:42:11especially when David began building the house on this tricky site
0:42:11 > 0:42:15so close to the shoreline and surrounded by trees.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19The soil here is extremely unstable...
0:42:19 > 0:42:22All of this area is referred to
0:42:22 > 0:42:25by local authority as a natural hazard area.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30- Gosh.- So what we had to do here to support the house was drive railway
0:42:30 > 0:42:35iron six metres into the ground before we could pour any concrete.
0:42:36 > 0:42:39So we needed to bring in a pile-driving break and,
0:42:39 > 0:42:42along the way, there were a number of old beech trees.
0:42:42 > 0:42:48So I heroically climb onto the digger, with a little pruning saw,
0:42:48 > 0:42:51up to the top of one of the beech trees
0:42:51 > 0:42:54and surgically remove a little branch.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57And then I hear a bellowing scream from the building platform.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00- Who could that possibly be? - That's the client.
0:43:00 > 0:43:02- You're joking.- No.- Yeah.- Really?
0:43:02 > 0:43:03Sounds like an ask, doesn't it?
0:43:03 > 0:43:08What I learned very quickly was that the trees on this site were sacrosanct.
0:43:08 > 0:43:10- Right.- He wanted to take the stuff out.
0:43:10 > 0:43:14I said to him very politely and kindly, "For every tree you take down, I cut off a finger."
0:43:14 > 0:43:16He said, "Oh, fair enough." So...
0:43:16 > 0:43:18But look at it now. Isn't it incredible?
0:43:18 > 0:43:22If they'd taken them all down, I just...the house feels settled in the landscape.
0:43:22 > 0:43:23Which is just thrilling.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26I think that is...that must be about your sense of composition and light
0:43:26 > 0:43:29- and space.- I guess, yeah. I mean, that's for other people to say.
0:43:29 > 0:43:31I'm not aware of it because this is how I like living.
0:43:31 > 0:43:34It's me, I'm saying it, it's up to me to say it!
0:43:34 > 0:43:36I mean, it is a very peaceful place.
0:43:36 > 0:43:40The only sounds are birdsong, wind and water -
0:43:40 > 0:43:42that's it - and I love that.
0:43:42 > 0:43:45The essence of, like, naturalness.
0:43:45 > 0:43:47I think it's also manifested in the building, to a degree,
0:43:47 > 0:43:53the quality of the light, the quality of the design, the quality of the building - special.
0:43:54 > 0:43:58For what it's worth, I think it's...
0:43:59 > 0:44:00..perfect.
0:44:00 > 0:44:02- Thank you.- Thank you.- Oh!
0:44:15 > 0:44:18- Thank you.- Thanks, Scotty.
0:44:18 > 0:44:19It feels a bit sad to be leaving.
0:44:22 > 0:44:23When we arrived here today,
0:44:23 > 0:44:27I honestly thought this was one of the most beautiful places I'd ever been.
0:44:27 > 0:44:31And we were concerned, weren't we, that the house wouldn't live up to the environment?
0:44:31 > 0:44:32But it has, hasn't it?
0:44:32 > 0:44:35It has because it doesn't try and compete with the environment.
0:44:35 > 0:44:37It doesn't try and add anything.
0:44:37 > 0:44:42It just subtly weaves itself into this place, so it's inseparable.
0:44:42 > 0:44:45And it's sexy, too, Piers. Very, very sexy.
0:45:02 > 0:45:07Our last extraordinary house takes us to the very tip of south-east Canada
0:45:07 > 0:45:09and to the province of Nova Scotia.
0:45:14 > 0:45:17We are heading to a three-bedroom holiday home set on the edge of this
0:45:17 > 0:45:22wild coastline, which is prone to extreme swings in temperature and
0:45:22 > 0:45:23the threat of rough storms.
0:45:24 > 0:45:26There's a real sense of mystery about Nova Scotia,
0:45:26 > 0:45:29all those Canadian writers and actually singer-songwriters and things.
0:45:29 > 0:45:33This is like some of those landscapes you see on those Swedish mysteries.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38The owners of our next home are both busy physicians and wanted to build
0:45:38 > 0:45:42themselves a secluded retreat on the edge of the Atlantic coast
0:45:42 > 0:45:44as close to the water as possible.
0:45:45 > 0:45:49So they bought a plot of land with no infrastructure in place -
0:45:49 > 0:45:51so remote it didn't even have a road.
0:45:55 > 0:45:59They employed an award-winning local architect to take on the challenge
0:45:59 > 0:46:02of designing them a waterfront home.
0:46:02 > 0:46:05The house needed to face the Atlantic Ocean head-on
0:46:05 > 0:46:09and withstand all that Mother Nature has to throw at it.
0:46:09 > 0:46:12We're going to see a house that I know Piers is very excited about.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14I am excited. I feel like I'm on a pilgrimage
0:46:14 > 0:46:17because this architect I've thought about for about 20 years,
0:46:17 > 0:46:21and he's one of three or four architects in the world
0:46:21 > 0:46:25who work at a really regional level doing quite modest things,
0:46:25 > 0:46:28but their work is known internationally.
0:46:28 > 0:46:33This is a Nova Scotian architect who's got a world-famous reputation?
0:46:33 > 0:46:34- Completely.- How exciting!
0:46:34 > 0:46:36Really exciting. Really excited, actually.
0:46:36 > 0:46:38I just hope it's not going to be a let down.
0:46:38 > 0:46:40They say don't meet your heroes.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43- What's his name?- Brian MacKay-Lyons.
0:46:43 > 0:46:45You look a little bit scared.
0:46:45 > 0:46:47Is it like meeting an old girlfriend or something,
0:46:47 > 0:46:50or a woman that you've always really fancied off the telly?
0:46:50 > 0:46:53- I think so. Yeah. Absolutely. - You don't want her to be a disappointment?
0:46:53 > 0:46:55I don't want her to be a big disappointment, no.
0:46:55 > 0:46:57Is this your Joanna Lumley, Piers?
0:46:58 > 0:46:59- Here we are.- OK!
0:47:24 > 0:47:25It's quite formal, isn't it?
0:47:25 > 0:47:29You arrive up a staircase between two buildings.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34It's very sort of ordered and neat, isn't it?
0:47:34 > 0:47:36And it doesn't give much away, does it? Very closed.
0:47:36 > 0:47:38It's not announcing itself, is it, at all?
0:47:38 > 0:47:41No. No, and a secret door almost to go in.
0:47:41 > 0:47:43Very hidden, isn't it?
0:47:43 > 0:47:44Are you a bit disappointed?
0:47:44 > 0:47:47I am a bit. I think I'm a bit underwhelmed.
0:47:47 > 0:47:50- An entrance is important, isn't it? - Really important. Really important.
0:47:50 > 0:47:55I like the way it's perched delicately on this very rocky base, though,
0:47:55 > 0:47:57because this is a rocky place.
0:47:57 > 0:47:59I mean, it's a beautiful bit of landscape.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01And, at the moment, there's two or three, really,
0:48:01 > 0:48:05very simple boxes just perched on top.
0:48:05 > 0:48:07It's quite sort of intriguing, though.
0:48:07 > 0:48:11I suspect that it's all closed this side, but open the other,
0:48:11 > 0:48:14- or at least that's what I'm hoping. - Yeah.
0:48:16 > 0:48:20In keeping with the maritime theme of its coastal environment,
0:48:20 > 0:48:25Two Hulls was designed to resemble the bodies of two ships in dry dock.
0:48:27 > 0:48:32Each separate hull of this building is designated for individual sleeping and living areas,
0:48:32 > 0:48:35both connected by a large entrance hall.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40Built on a solid concrete foundation,
0:48:40 > 0:48:43the steel structure is clad with a cedar wooden shell
0:48:43 > 0:48:45and has glass windows throughout.
0:48:47 > 0:48:50Both cantilever trusses were cleverly designed to jut out
0:48:50 > 0:48:54over the coastline, inviting the sea to pass under the house
0:48:54 > 0:48:57without damaging the building during rough storms.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04I want to watch you open the door because I want to see whether my
0:49:04 > 0:49:07theory is right - that you could hurtle backwards down those stairs.
0:49:07 > 0:49:09I've got a feeling that's a design fault.
0:49:09 > 0:49:11That would be really weird!
0:49:11 > 0:49:14- It would. - But I'm hoping it opens in!
0:49:14 > 0:49:18THEY LAUGH
0:49:18 > 0:49:22- You knew that was going to happen! - I did.- You're so bad!
0:49:26 > 0:49:28I think it's sort of growing on me,
0:49:28 > 0:49:32but it's like a person, having to really probe them
0:49:32 > 0:49:35and work quite hard to get some response.
0:49:35 > 0:49:36It's like meeting your heroines.
0:49:36 > 0:49:41- It's like dreaming of meeting Betty Davis and ending up with Sue Pollard.- Yes!
0:49:41 > 0:49:45Not that there's anything wrong with you, Sue, you're adorable, but you know what I mean!
0:49:48 > 0:49:50Entering the master bedroom,
0:49:50 > 0:49:54the cleverness of this cantilever design is exposed in all its glory.
0:49:56 > 0:49:59That, to me, looks like an architectural dream.
0:49:59 > 0:50:04This is interesting construction - big steel frame, big stiff truss.
0:50:04 > 0:50:06And by the sea.
0:50:06 > 0:50:08This room stretches out over the rocks below,
0:50:08 > 0:50:10as if it's suspended in midair,
0:50:10 > 0:50:13and gives the impression of floating above the water.
0:50:14 > 0:50:17I must say, this is, so far, this is my favourite space.
0:50:17 > 0:50:19- Me, too.- I like these.
0:50:19 > 0:50:23- I think it's quite dynamic, quite exciting.- Yeah, yeah.
0:50:23 > 0:50:29- And also I feel if it was a really awful day, a kind of really... - Howling gale.- Howling gale, yeah.
0:50:29 > 0:50:31I could feel quite safe up here. I could witness it,
0:50:31 > 0:50:32but I wouldn't feel like I was in it.
0:50:32 > 0:50:34And this is a just beautiful view.
0:50:34 > 0:50:39- It's beautiful.- You feel you can breathe and you suddenly get the expanse of the view.- Yeah.
0:50:40 > 0:50:45The hull to the right contains a compact but practical galley kitchen
0:50:45 > 0:50:48and a 32-foot-high living room.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52- I like seeing the silver birches. - That's beautiful, isn't it, this?
0:50:52 > 0:50:55- Yeah.- I mean, looking down into this is really beautiful,
0:50:55 > 0:50:58really beautiful. Really mysterious and magical.
0:50:58 > 0:51:03This, by anyone's standards, is a really interesting,
0:51:03 > 0:51:05- quite beautiful space. - I like the wood.
0:51:05 > 0:51:08I actually like the sort of neutral palette in here -
0:51:08 > 0:51:10I think it works really well with the silver birches.
0:51:10 > 0:51:14- Have they got a telly? Is it behind those white things?- I don't know.
0:51:14 > 0:51:16- I hope they haven't got one. - You hope they haven't?
0:51:16 > 0:51:20- You don't need a telly here, do you? - Well, you might want to watch us!
0:51:20 > 0:51:23HE LAUGHS
0:51:30 > 0:51:34This is almost the first thing I've seen that is a little bit playful,
0:51:34 > 0:51:38you know, this is like going up in a ship's sort of galley, isn't it?
0:51:38 > 0:51:41- Nice arse, by the way.- This is...
0:51:41 > 0:51:43I don't know, it's a funny kind of chill-out space.
0:51:43 > 0:51:46- Oh?- A sort of...dunno, really.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49HE WHISTLES
0:51:49 > 0:51:51SHE LAUGHS
0:51:51 > 0:51:53Is that the messy quarter?
0:51:53 > 0:51:55This is the messy quarter. I'm going to stay up here.
0:51:55 > 0:51:58It's where all the clobber is, all the games and all the stuff.
0:51:58 > 0:52:00It's quite nice. It's a beautiful space.
0:52:00 > 0:52:01It's an interesting building.
0:52:01 > 0:52:03It's a clever building. It's an extraordinary view.
0:52:03 > 0:52:05I mean, there's lots of good stuff here.
0:52:11 > 0:52:15This house is fairly sophisticated and it's a big bit of engineering,
0:52:15 > 0:52:18and there are two big trusses.
0:52:18 > 0:52:20And a truss, really,
0:52:20 > 0:52:24is something that is very stiff but made up out of small pieces.
0:52:24 > 0:52:26Because that's a box, that will skew.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29You know, if you push there, the whole thing would skew around.
0:52:29 > 0:52:31So what you then need to do is make it very stiff and,
0:52:31 > 0:52:37by triangulating it, you make it very stiff because triangles are inherently really stiff things.
0:52:37 > 0:52:41This is now a really simple twig truss
0:52:41 > 0:52:44and this is a box, much like the house.
0:52:44 > 0:52:48You hold it down with a big bit of foundation,
0:52:48 > 0:52:52big bit of concrete in the ground, and then there's a pivot or a prop.
0:52:52 > 0:52:56And what the prop is doing is allowing this piece to cantilever,
0:52:56 > 0:52:58and this is stopping it tipping.
0:52:58 > 0:53:02This big bit of foundation is stopping it tipping in the ground.
0:53:02 > 0:53:04Architects often get really excited by cantilevers
0:53:04 > 0:53:09because they're an opportunity to do a piece of non-domestic construction
0:53:09 > 0:53:11and they look great.
0:53:13 > 0:53:17Owners Marcelo and Sylvia fell in love with this rugged Canadian
0:53:17 > 0:53:20coastline after moving to Nova Scotia from Brazil.
0:53:23 > 0:53:25We started exploring the province
0:53:25 > 0:53:29and really fell in love with this coast here.
0:53:29 > 0:53:31It's a beautiful coast.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34It's very natural, small fishing villages and really beautiful,
0:53:34 > 0:53:39beautiful beaches, which kind of reminded us of our beaches in Brazil.
0:53:39 > 0:53:41- Do they?- They do, yeah.- Why is that?
0:53:41 > 0:53:43A little colder, but they do.
0:53:43 > 0:53:47Yes, quite a lot colder. How did you go about choosing your architect?
0:53:47 > 0:53:48We knew of Brian's works,
0:53:48 > 0:53:52particularly around Halifax area, you know.
0:53:52 > 0:53:55One of our neighbours has a house that was built by him.
0:53:55 > 0:53:59And they are very, I mean, he has very strong style.
0:53:59 > 0:54:02His houses, you recognise them when you look at them.
0:54:02 > 0:54:04And we, you know,
0:54:04 > 0:54:08we enjoy that style and we thought it would actually fit here nicely.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11- Hey, Brian.- Hey, Piers. - How are you doing?- Good.
0:54:11 > 0:54:13- Good to meet you.- Good to meet you.
0:54:13 > 0:54:16- Finally. Been looking forward to meeting you.- Yeah, likewise.
0:54:16 > 0:54:21Award-winning architect Brian MacKay-Lyons is one of my architectural heroes.
0:54:21 > 0:54:26He's the man responsible for designing Marcelo and Sylvia's extraordinary coastal home.
0:54:26 > 0:54:30My partner and I grew up in and around shipyards, wooden shipbuilding,
0:54:30 > 0:54:32and so we would play in the shavings underneath the hulls.
0:54:32 > 0:54:35- OK, yeah.- There is something archetypal about being in those boat
0:54:35 > 0:54:38sheds, underneath the boats, in the bellies of the boats.
0:54:38 > 0:54:40So this is what it's all about, then?
0:54:40 > 0:54:43I mean this, you know, the underside of a boat.
0:54:43 > 0:54:47I mean, it's not something that us landlubbers get to see very often.
0:54:47 > 0:54:50- Also it's a way of framing the landscape.- Yes, yes.
0:54:50 > 0:54:52Like, right now, I don't see much sky
0:54:52 > 0:54:54and I see water and beach and rocks.
0:54:54 > 0:54:59And so it frames the world and makes it a very different thing when it's,
0:54:59 > 0:55:01like, cropped by the building.
0:55:01 > 0:55:03So this is really the experience that the building
0:55:03 > 0:55:07- is supposed to be about, is the under, the between.- Yeah.
0:55:07 > 0:55:12You know, I always think the places between the buildings and the land is really the object.
0:55:12 > 0:55:16- Like in music, you know, the rests in music are as important as the notes.- Yeah. Absolutely.
0:55:16 > 0:55:19Tell me a little about the conversation you had with the clients -
0:55:19 > 0:55:22- or the ongoing conversation. - Well, the first day on the site -
0:55:22 > 0:55:25Frank Lloyd Wright said, "If you don't get an idea the first day on the site with the client,
0:55:25 > 0:55:27"you're not going to get one."
0:55:27 > 0:55:29So first day we came here, we were climbing on the rocks,
0:55:29 > 0:55:33we all felt that this was the place where the landscape was most dramatic,
0:55:33 > 0:55:34closest to the water.
0:55:34 > 0:55:37You conceived of a building.
0:55:37 > 0:55:39Was it this building?
0:55:39 > 0:55:40I think fundamentally it was.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43It was the scheme that we did together with the client first day.
0:55:47 > 0:55:52But building a house with spectacular ocean views in this wilderness didn't come easy.
0:55:52 > 0:55:57With no infrastructure, creating a road to access this remote plot
0:55:57 > 0:56:01took an entire year of planning and careful construction.
0:56:01 > 0:56:05That's a major road you've had to build there, isn't it?
0:56:05 > 0:56:08Because was there nothing there before, maybe a walking track or nothing?
0:56:08 > 0:56:13- Nothing at all?- That road had to go through rocks.- How did they do it?
0:56:13 > 0:56:16They had to dynamite a lot of...
0:56:16 > 0:56:21And we wanted to destroy the least amount possible trees,
0:56:21 > 0:56:23and so that's why it's a bit...
0:56:23 > 0:56:28You have to see where it will be better not to destroy the trees.
0:56:30 > 0:56:32These people were very gentle clients.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35You know, they weren't pushy, but they were very curious.
0:56:35 > 0:56:37Intellectually curious people.
0:56:37 > 0:56:43And actually interested in art for its own value,
0:56:43 > 0:56:46- which makes the best kind of client. - Totally.
0:56:46 > 0:56:49Coming back now, a couple of years later,
0:56:49 > 0:56:53are you as in love with the building as you were when you finished it?
0:56:53 > 0:56:57You know, I know it sounds terrible to say, but, yes, I am, actually.
0:57:00 > 0:57:03Are you happy? I mean, do you love this house?
0:57:03 > 0:57:04- Oh, yes.- Yeah, I love it.
0:57:04 > 0:57:08Being surrounded by nature and almost being part of nature,
0:57:08 > 0:57:13even though we are in a steel structure that's quite huge!
0:57:13 > 0:57:17But we are with nature and it's a beautiful...you know, we love it. Yeah.
0:57:22 > 0:57:24It's a beautiful piece of land, isn't it, Piers?
0:57:24 > 0:57:26It is beautiful, actually.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29You know, now when I look back, I mean,
0:57:29 > 0:57:32it is a dramatic building and actually very beautiful,
0:57:32 > 0:57:36sitting in the silver birches in the mist brooding there.
0:57:37 > 0:57:39Marcelo and Sylvia love their building.
0:57:39 > 0:57:41- They do.- They love their house.
0:57:41 > 0:57:44They've got their beautiful beach and all their lovely wildlife,
0:57:44 > 0:57:46and that's what matters at the end of the day.
0:57:46 > 0:57:48- And that's a happy ending.- It is.
0:57:56 > 0:57:58Next time, Piers and I will be exploring
0:57:58 > 0:58:03some of the most extraordinary subterranean homes in the world.
0:58:03 > 0:58:04It's a hobbit house!
0:58:04 > 0:58:09Discovering how architects have overcome the challenges of building underground.
0:58:09 > 0:58:11It's stressful, it's tiring.
0:58:11 > 0:58:14'It was beyond what we had hoped and imagined.'
0:58:14 > 0:58:16It's really exciting!