0:00:34 > 0:00:38Here, outside Paris, Le Corbusier built the Villa Savoye.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41This would define the look of modernism -
0:00:41 > 0:00:46a minimal flat-roofed large-windowed white box.
0:00:46 > 0:00:51He proclaimed the house would be a machine for living in.
0:00:51 > 0:00:55More than anything, Le Corbusier admired the modern motorcar
0:00:55 > 0:01:00as a perfect marriage of function and design.
0:01:00 > 0:01:07The house would function as efficiently as a car and be as modern as a car.
0:01:07 > 0:01:13Imagine what people thought of the house in the 1920s.
0:01:13 > 0:01:18And not only did Le Corbusier want this house to be like a car,
0:01:18 > 0:01:23he also wanted the house to accommodate a car as the central tool of the modern age.
0:01:23 > 0:01:30The house is raised on legs and its dimensions fit exactly a car's turning circle.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34There's also a built-in garage.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40This house is a machine for living in, but it's more than that.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43It's a temple, a temple to purity.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47This entrance hall is so simple, so austere.
0:01:47 > 0:01:52And the clue to its meaning is given by this rather unexpected object
0:01:52 > 0:01:54standing in the entrance hall.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57A sink. Here it is, in the middle of the space.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59It's a place of ritualistic washing.
0:01:59 > 0:02:05Here, one washes away the outer world, the dirt that's left behind.
0:02:05 > 0:02:10And purified, one then enters the upper regions of the house.
0:02:10 > 0:02:15There's a beautiful staircase here, sculptural object. You go up that.
0:02:15 > 0:02:20Or more striking, the architect invites the visitor to go on an artificial promenade,
0:02:20 > 0:02:25to go on this ramp that leads into the heart of the building.
0:02:29 > 0:02:35The first thing that strikes you is the light, the white painted walls, the huge window.
0:02:35 > 0:02:41Indeed, the light draws you onwards and upwards into a better, brighter world of the future.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48"A great epoch has begun.
0:02:48 > 0:02:55"There is a new spirit," wrote Le Corbusier in his book, Towards A New Architecture.
0:02:55 > 0:03:01Architecture that used light and space would make people healthier and happier.
0:03:02 > 0:03:07No more dark basements and a reinforced concrete frame
0:03:07 > 0:03:12would allow for large ribbon windows, letting in lots more light...
0:03:15 > 0:03:18..but also free up the interior for open-plan living.
0:03:23 > 0:03:28Le Corbusier also told people HOW they should live in his house.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30Clothes should be tidied away.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33There should be no unnecessary furniture
0:03:33 > 0:03:36and he didn't like people having pictures up in their bedrooms.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44The rules even told you how to use your own bathroom.
0:03:44 > 0:03:49Behind me, the little closet is the lavatory, a secret place.
0:03:49 > 0:03:57Here, a bidet. In front of me, a basin, rather charmingly top lit through the skylight.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01Here, a rather squarish
0:04:01 > 0:04:03uncomfortable-looking bath.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07And in front of me, this serpentine form
0:04:07 > 0:04:13on which I'm meant to lounge. Having wrapped myself in my towel, I lie here...
0:04:15 > 0:04:19..as the architect would oblige me to do, drying myself, I suppose.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23And then, from here into bed.
0:04:23 > 0:04:28Le Corbusier even specified where to put the bed.
0:04:28 > 0:04:33It should go between two columns, at a precise distance from the bath and the window.
0:04:35 > 0:04:42This machine for living in is as attentive to detail as you might expect from a watchmaker's son.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48The ascending ramp continues from the central open court,
0:04:48 > 0:04:54leading to a flat roof terrace, maximising space and efficiency
0:04:54 > 0:04:56for exercise and fresh air.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58The architectural promenade
0:04:58 > 0:05:04climaxes in an external window framing the view.
0:05:07 > 0:05:14Villa Savoye made manifest a new architecture as set out to improve life through design.
0:05:14 > 0:05:21But at the end of the day, it was just a weekend retreat for a rich client.
0:05:21 > 0:05:27If architecture was really to change things, it would have to do it in a much bigger, bolder way.
0:05:38 > 0:05:44Road signs in Britain were chaotic and came in different sizes, symbols, colours and shapes.
0:05:44 > 0:05:48The result was frustration and confusion.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51When the motorways were still in the planning phase,
0:05:51 > 0:05:57the government had appointed a committee to investigate the issue of new signage.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00I thought perhaps we might need the help of a designer.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03So that was quite a very new thing for somebody,
0:06:03 > 0:06:11actually, for a committee, a government committee, to employ a consultant designer.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14How do they differ from present motor signs?
0:06:14 > 0:06:18We've used a mixture of block letters and small letters
0:06:18 > 0:06:20for greater legibility.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert were charged with developing
0:06:24 > 0:06:27a new signage system for Britain's motorways.
0:06:27 > 0:06:29They realised that the absolute essence
0:06:29 > 0:06:32of an efficient motorway signage system was clarity.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36The signs had to be easy to read, instantly recognisable to motorists.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39Motorists had to understand what they were saying.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42And it had to convey essential information to them,
0:06:42 > 0:06:45but motorists really didn't need to waste time thinking.
0:06:45 > 0:06:50- The basic unit, obviously, is the typeface and from that, you build out.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52In order to achieve this simplicity,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56they had to do some very complicated work behind the scenes.
0:06:56 > 0:07:01So they thought through every single aspect of the way in which those signs would be read.
0:07:01 > 0:07:08The lettering always stayed the same and you read the symbol first and then you picked out the lettering
0:07:08 > 0:07:12and then you got the sense of what the message was and the route numbers.
0:07:12 > 0:07:14So, basically, it's very simple. And the colours.
0:07:14 > 0:07:19And we've also put white letters on a blue background for the same reason.
0:07:19 > 0:07:25I remember the formula that I used was ultramarine plus azure blue
0:07:25 > 0:07:28plus zinc white designer's colours.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32We were amazed at the size of them.
0:07:32 > 0:07:37It staggered us. We just couldn't comprehend that you need a road sign as big as we were making them.
0:07:37 > 0:07:42Of course, you're travelling at 70 mph and you want to pick up the directions early.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46So they're logical and they're correct, but we were surprised.
0:07:46 > 0:07:51They are beautifully elegant. They're like works of art in their own right.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54But they're also completely utterly functional, and that is why today,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57over 40 years later, that signage hasn't changed.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01It doesn't need to change. Perfect typography is perfect typography.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03When you're driving on the motorway or the road,
0:08:03 > 0:08:09thanks to Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, you never have to think about the signs you're looking at.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Keep it simple and it's easier to read and remember
0:08:13 > 0:08:17and it looks good in its own right in the landscape.
0:08:30 > 0:08:35Walter Gropius was one of the most vital architects of the last century.
0:08:35 > 0:08:41He believed in bridging the gap between technology, industry and architecture.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48His greatest achievement was founding the Bauhaus,
0:08:48 > 0:08:54the arts institute that brought together architecture, painting, woodwork and design.
0:08:56 > 0:09:02In 1925, he designed the Bauhaus headquarters in Dessau, Germany.
0:09:02 > 0:09:07It's arguably the most famous monument to modernism.
0:09:07 > 0:09:13Great architects like Mies van der Rohe and artists Kandinsky and Klee, all taught here.
0:09:13 > 0:09:18The building has three parts with no clear back or front.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21A radical departure from other public buildings at that time.
0:09:23 > 0:09:30Today, it's still a school for architecture and design and its workshops are still in use.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35Even though they were built about 70-odd years ago,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37for us now they're really good to work in.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40It's great cos most of the walls are windows,
0:09:40 > 0:09:42so you get the most out of natural light.
0:09:44 > 0:09:50Gropius also built the apartments for the Bauhaus masters.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53The three identical houses are staggered in height.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00They show a theory that Gropius believed in all his life -
0:10:00 > 0:10:04identical units that can be combined in any number of ways.
0:10:04 > 0:10:12In 1926, he was commissioned by the City of Dessau to provide 300 low-income-family homes.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15He used the Torten housing estate as an experiment
0:10:15 > 0:10:19to see how much space people really needed to live in.
0:10:19 > 0:10:25Each two-storey house had a plot of land just the right size for the owners to keep a sheep or a goat.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29He hoped the workers could make extra cash by selling milk and cheese.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32But the experiment backfired.
0:10:32 > 0:10:38The estate was slated as looking like an assembly line of fridges.
0:10:38 > 0:10:43In the 1930s, the Nazis accused the school of neglecting German values
0:10:43 > 0:10:45and encouraging Jewish influence.
0:10:45 > 0:10:50In 1933, they shut the Bauhaus down.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53In 1937, Gropius went to the US
0:10:53 > 0:10:56and was made a senior professor at Harvard.
0:10:56 > 0:11:01He designed much of the new campus and founded The Architects' Collaborative.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07Although he died in 1969, the collaborative ensured
0:11:07 > 0:11:12that the Bauhaus principles of teamwork and artistic unity live on.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33When I think of modern offices, I think of drab open-plan rooms in Slough
0:11:33 > 0:11:37crammed full of David Brents. But does it have to be like this?
0:11:37 > 0:11:41Will the office ever become an enjoyable place to work?
0:11:54 > 0:11:58One of the most uninspiring office environments is the call centre.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01There's not much company loyalty and people don't stick around for long.
0:12:01 > 0:12:06So a company in Swindon decided to do something completely different.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11- Hi.- Hiya. How you doing?
0:12:11 > 0:12:13- Good. How are you?- Not so bad. Come through.- Thank you.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15So, Paul, how long have you been in this building?
0:12:15 > 0:12:18We moved in in January 2000.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21We really needed to be in a purpose-built building.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24And I think there was a need for the company to have an identity
0:12:24 > 0:12:27and we really wanted a building to show that.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30And I've heard about some of your treats round the building.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35We have ladies in 1950s trolley dolly outfits,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39running round with motorised trolleys, going in between desks
0:12:39 > 0:12:42and giving everyone tea and coffee and offering sandwiches.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46Our reception desk that we've got here is specifically designed and built.
0:12:46 > 0:12:53We like people to enjoy working here and we also want to create obviously a bit of interest about the company
0:12:53 > 0:12:55via what we do, sort of thing.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Most of the people who work here are in their early 20s,
0:12:58 > 0:13:01so the architect designed the toilets to look like nightclubs.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03DANCE MUSIC
0:13:18 > 0:13:20Not very good for doing your make-up, though.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23The fountain's unique, too.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27The height of the water mirrors the height of the lift, so you can tell which floor it's on.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41This building is a great example of design that works,
0:13:41 > 0:13:44but you don't have to use £7 million.
0:13:44 > 0:13:49Richard Palmer needed a little bit more space, so he just did it using furniture.
0:13:49 > 0:13:54Richard created office high chairs which sit at a two-metre-high desk,
0:13:54 > 0:13:56cleverly separating the desk from the meeting area.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02- Hi, Richard.- Hi.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06- So I take it you don't suffer from vertigo.- Not particularly, no.
0:14:06 > 0:14:08That's lucky cos we're pretty high up here.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11- About two metres.- So I take it you've got a bunk bed at home?
0:14:11 > 0:14:15It's funny cos I'm a twin and, yeah, I used to have a bunk bed.
0:14:15 > 0:14:16So maybe that's it, subliminally.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19So, did you invent these? This is totally your idea?
0:14:19 > 0:14:23Yeah. I mean, the chair itself is a standard Herman Miller product.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26But the structure and the rest of the layout and the design is all ours.
0:14:26 > 0:14:31The original inception is to try and segregate the space, but it works much better than we imagined.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34We don't feel part of what's going on down there,
0:14:34 > 0:14:38and conversely, they don't feel that you're part of what's going on.
0:14:38 > 0:14:39So you do actually very quickly separate.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42There was no desire to get secretaries in skirts up here?
0:14:42 > 0:14:45HE LAUGHS
0:14:54 > 0:14:58The new Selfridges feels like so much more than just a shop.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01It's a destination, a whole city under one roof.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06In the 21st century department store, selling comes second.
0:15:06 > 0:15:11What's important is getting people through the door and keeping them there with an array of experiences.
0:15:11 > 0:15:16Once and for all, splashing your cash becomes hard to resist.
0:15:16 > 0:15:19We animate loads of brands, loads of experiences
0:15:19 > 0:15:21in a place that has been designed to
0:15:21 > 0:15:23accommodate those brands and experiences.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26We have worked with a whole range of designers and architects,
0:15:26 > 0:15:32and it was incredible to see how that injection of creativity and design
0:15:32 > 0:15:35put a whole new momentum behind that business. We all got what we need.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39You know, we got suits and trousers and socks and everything.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43You know, wardrobes full of them. But it's really about that experience of buying
0:15:43 > 0:15:46and the pleasure that you get about finding something new and different.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49For us, it's important that our place
0:15:49 > 0:15:53is as exciting and interesting as the other places that they could go to.
0:15:53 > 0:15:55I think of competition for Selfridges as, you know,
0:15:55 > 0:15:58"I'm going to go and watch Arsenal play," or, "I'm going to lunch."
0:15:58 > 0:16:02"I'm going to go to an art gallery or a museum." It's a day out. It's part of a day out.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04It's about much more than shopping.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10What's really interesting is that it's not a new concept.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14It's exactly what Gordon Selfridge wanted when he opened the store in 1909.
0:16:14 > 0:16:18Selfridge really thought about customer psychology.
0:16:18 > 0:16:23It's thanks to him that department stores have their perfume counters on the ground floor.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26He realised the scent wafting out to the street would tempt people in.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29He was also a master showman.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32He put on art displays and hosted theatrical events.
0:16:34 > 0:16:40Selfridges took the radical decision to use cutting-edge architects rather than interior designers.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46Across town, a rival store is also aware of the need to diversify.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50Crucial to the reinvention of a department store is the cafe and restaurants.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Harvey Nichols wanted their new restaurant to be the best in town,
0:16:54 > 0:16:56a destination in itself.
0:16:56 > 0:17:02The idea of putting a high-class restaurant, a cafe and a high-quality food offering,
0:17:02 > 0:17:07as they call it, on top of the department store and making it a destination
0:17:07 > 0:17:10was unheard of ten years ago.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15What they wanted to do was really establish this as an attraction within the store, itself.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18Here we have a restaurant at the top of the building.
0:17:18 > 0:17:24We draw people through the building and then people percolate back through the building again
0:17:24 > 0:17:25and have the retail experience.
0:17:25 > 0:17:30And after a lunch-time bottle of wine, half-cut shoppers spend double the cash.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Harvey Nichols has a different design ethos to Selfridges.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39The backdrop is kept cool and calm so the products take centre stage.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47So confident are Selfridges of the revival of the department store
0:17:47 > 0:17:51that they've started to commission more up and down the country.
0:17:51 > 0:17:56At Manchester's Exchange Square, a different architect did each floor.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58It's a design pick 'n' mix.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06Here, Aldo Cibic uses bright colours and shiny resin.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15This floor couldn't be more different.
0:18:15 > 0:18:21Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen opts for elegant natural stone, subtle lighting and lots of grey.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24The basement holds the food hall.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28A blueprint for the future of food retailing.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32The food hall is conceived as a series of droplets in a landscape
0:18:32 > 0:18:36which displays food in these very beautiful sinuous forms.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40The ceiling and floors are curved so you get this very sensuous form
0:18:40 > 0:18:43and what you feel like when you're in here
0:18:43 > 0:18:47is that you're in the belly of an amazing cavern of delights, really.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50This food hall is one of the places where you just never want to leave.
0:18:50 > 0:18:56You want to have lunch here. You want to spend time just waiting for people or just really sampling food.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58Not good if you can't control what you're eating.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01Selfridges approached me to design the ground floor.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04I said I'd never done a store before and they said, "Great!"
0:19:04 > 0:19:06They were looking for new ideas.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10What you have is a sky which sits over the whole thing.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14And the lights have been tempered so it's like a morning sky, a fresh light,
0:19:14 > 0:19:19a kind of really sparkly light, so that when the cosmetics and the bags and the luxury goods are displayed,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22they have a flattering, complementary light all over them.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27What I then tried to do is have a floor which looks like a beach, as the water's just passed over it
0:19:27 > 0:19:32and drained away. So you have these white pebbles, which unify the entire space.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36And then you have these objects, which are geometric and cubic,
0:19:36 > 0:19:40but also translucent, and capture the light in them,
0:19:40 > 0:19:44with mirrors to reflect and give you kind of glimpses of yourself as you go past.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48So what you have is an environment which is complementary to the idea of beauty
0:19:48 > 0:19:51and also to the idea of luxury and feeling good.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07Urban planners are already thinking of ways to cope with the consequences
0:20:07 > 0:20:11of such a rise in temperature across Britain.
0:20:11 > 0:20:16One area that will have to change will be the design of our homes.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22By 2080, our homes will have to be able to shut out the summer heat,
0:20:22 > 0:20:27conserve water and use the minimum amount of energy possible.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30Well, this could be a model for our future living.
0:20:30 > 0:20:35Beddington Zero Energy Development, also known as BedZED,
0:20:35 > 0:20:39is the UK's largest eco-community.
0:20:39 > 0:20:44It's an experimental set-up offering a practical solution to sustainable living.
0:20:44 > 0:20:49Well, that's what the blurb says, but what's it like to live here?
0:20:49 > 0:20:54Sue Riddlestone and her family moved in when it was built four years ago.
0:20:54 > 0:20:59Wow. It's so light and bright and pretty, isn't it?
0:20:59 > 0:21:01It's a fantastic feeling.
0:21:01 > 0:21:03Well, when we first moved in, we thought
0:21:03 > 0:21:06"Wow, this is really fantastic and futuristic."
0:21:06 > 0:21:08But actually, after a couple of weeks,
0:21:08 > 0:21:11we just got used to all the various features.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18Believe it or not, the house doesn't need any central heating or air conditioning.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22It's all down to the architecture.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24- We've got these very thick walls. - Right.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28A bit like a church where you've got the solid construction
0:21:28 > 0:21:32so it keeps fairly cool in the summer and also keeps the heat in in the winter.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36The sun floods in through the south-facing conservatories,
0:21:36 > 0:21:39capturing natural light and heat for the cold winter months.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41Well, look at this!
0:21:41 > 0:21:45I love this sort of futuristic rooftop you've got here.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47It's fabulous.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Lining all the roofs are strange-looking vents.
0:21:49 > 0:21:53They capture the wind to ventilate the homes in the summer.
0:21:53 > 0:21:59Energy used in our homes accounts for 27% of all carbon emissions in the UK.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03The aim here is to reduce that down to zero.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07All the hot water and part of the electricity
0:22:07 > 0:22:13comes from one central unit on site, fuelled by locally sourced wood chippings
0:22:13 > 0:22:15that would otherwise go to waste.
0:22:15 > 0:22:19The site has also been designed to save water.
0:22:19 > 0:22:23The roof is covered with a plant called sedum.
0:22:23 > 0:22:24Sedum is like a succulent plant.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29When it rains, it holds the water and stops it all rushing down at once.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32And then we collect the rainwater in big tanks under the ground
0:22:32 > 0:22:35and we use that water for flushing the toilets.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40BedZED is one of the few housing developments around now
0:22:40 > 0:22:46that's been designed to suit the climate conditions of the future.
0:22:46 > 0:22:53But can these ideas be scaled up so that by 2080, whole cities offer sustainable living?
0:22:55 > 0:23:02To adapt the 22 million homes across the UK would certainly be a major challenge.
0:23:16 > 0:23:18Who fancies this lifestyle?
0:23:18 > 0:23:23This vision of housing bliss is care of a rather famous Scandinavian furniture company
0:23:23 > 0:23:28who see flatpack homes as one solution to the UK's housing crisis.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30Allen keys at the ready.
0:23:30 > 0:23:31But wait a minute.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35Ready-made housing plonked into place... Haven't we been here before?
0:23:35 > 0:23:40Well, yes. Prefab housing is a great British treasure and has been around for years.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44The post-war version is the one we all remember.
0:23:44 > 0:23:50Modular-living aficionado Greg thinks we shouldn't underestimate the power of a prefab.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53By the time of the Second World War, there was a huge housing crisis.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56The problem was made particularly acute because the men were away.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58There wasn't anyone to build the houses.
0:23:58 > 0:24:00So the government needed to come up with something.
0:24:00 > 0:24:02They came up with the idea of building prefabs.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05Prefab - noun.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08Something that is prefabricated as a building or fixture.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12You would never know such an attractive house is a prefab.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16Nowadays, labour costs are very high and particularly in the last five years,
0:24:16 > 0:24:20so maybe it's more appropriate now that we're looking back at prefabrication.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24Now, fast-forward to the noughties and another housing crisis...
0:24:24 > 0:24:27Are flatpacks the new prefabs?
0:24:27 > 0:24:33And in which case, aren't we just using a familiar solution for the same old problem?
0:24:33 > 0:24:35No. This is a very different approach.
0:24:35 > 0:24:39That was government-sponsored cheap housing, short-term life spans.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42It was an intermediate solution.
0:24:42 > 0:24:47You know, this is bringing something back which is fundamentally more sophisticated,
0:24:47 > 0:24:50very, very high quality and is here to last.
0:24:50 > 0:24:52It sounds too good to be true.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Affordable, high quality, contemporary housing for the masses.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59But, Alan, it's still a prefab, isn't it?
0:24:59 > 0:25:02If you say, "Is it factory constructed?" then yes.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07But I think, from the days of prefabbed houses as we all knew them 40, 50 years ago,
0:25:07 > 0:25:09this is a massive progression.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12He would say that, wouldn't he?
0:25:12 > 0:25:16After all, his company is responsible for bringing these houses over from Sweden.
0:25:16 > 0:25:23And even if flatpack is the future of British housing, would it detach itself from the stigma of prefab?
0:25:23 > 0:25:26Some people had their doubts the first time round.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29There was lots of snobbery about prefabs in the 1940s.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33People saying "You're not living in Tin Can Alley!" "You're not living in that chicken shed!"
0:25:33 > 0:25:37But the people who moved in loved them and I think you'll find the same thing happens
0:25:37 > 0:25:38with these new prefab flatpacks.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42Betty lives just down the road from the new flatpack development
0:25:42 > 0:25:46in Tin Can Alley, or as it's better known, Wharfedale Road.
0:25:46 > 0:25:51She's lived in prefabs for over 40 years and is quite used to people's attitudes towards them.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Do you think it's funny that they kind of fell out of fashion
0:25:55 > 0:25:59at some point and people started to be quite rude about prefabs?
0:25:59 > 0:26:02Yes. When you get a taxi, they say, "Oh, Tin Town."
0:26:02 > 0:26:05When you say where you're going, they say, "Tin Town!"
0:26:05 > 0:26:06That's really rude.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08We just laugh it off.
0:26:08 > 0:26:11They don't see inside, do they?
0:26:11 > 0:26:15- This isn't the first prefab that you've lived in?- No. No.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18- I've lived in the single ones. - And what was that like? - It was brilliant.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22- It had all mod cons and everything. - Like what?
0:26:22 > 0:26:26Well, it had a fridge, which a lot of people didn't have then.
0:26:27 > 0:26:32Electric cooker. Electric boiler. Cupboards everywhere.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35'They even had an inside loo.
0:26:35 > 0:26:37'Prefab living is pretty fabulous.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40'Well, it is if Betty's anything to go by.'
0:26:40 > 0:26:44But then again, she's not forking out up to 150 grand to buy one.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47The only thing I'm slightly disappointed about with this new system
0:26:47 > 0:26:52is just how expensive these houses are. They're saying 35 grand maximum income for a household,
0:26:52 > 0:26:54so you've got to be low income to be able to buy them.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58Yet the actual retail cost of these houses is still really high.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03If they're popular, if they are mass produced, well, mass production can bring that price down.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06So, hopefully, this experiment will lead to something bigger.
0:27:06 > 0:27:08Is the British consumer ready for it?
0:27:08 > 0:27:13Well, we don't ask everybody to like it or to want to live in it.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17It's a solution. But we certainly had a very significant interest
0:27:17 > 0:27:19in what we're doing.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23The customers that we're talking to about living in these units
0:27:23 > 0:27:24are very, very excited.
0:27:24 > 0:27:30Betty loves it and, Lucy, I can see an evangelical fervour for flatpack actually burning in your eyes.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33- Why do you like it? - I think they're a really good idea.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35They're really cosy. They're very well insulated.
0:27:35 > 0:27:41They're much cheaper to produce and they should be more environmentally friendly to produce, as well,
0:27:41 > 0:27:45than using loads of cement, bricks and mortar which creates a lot of carbon emission.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48The disadvantage of it - what's the arguments against it?
0:27:48 > 0:27:51Well, most people are kind of persuaded
0:27:51 > 0:27:55that they need a mock Tudor, bricks and mortar, very traditional-style home.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57It feels more solid, doesn't it?
0:27:57 > 0:28:01Yeah, but we've got to change our perception because we have got a housing crisis.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04We need to build really, really fast to accommodate everyone that needs a home
0:28:04 > 0:28:09- and I think flatpacks are a really good solution to that. - Are they environmentally friendly?
0:28:09 > 0:28:14Yeah. They should be and I think the more that are made and the more that we get an appetite for them,
0:28:14 > 0:28:19the more that they will become easier, quicker to produce and more eco-friendly to produce.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30It was the emigre visionary Berthold Lubetkin
0:28:30 > 0:28:35who was to have the greatest influence on British architecture.
0:28:35 > 0:28:39It was here in leafy North London that Lubetkin launched his mission
0:28:39 > 0:28:41to convert the British to modernism.
0:28:41 > 0:28:46And this country's first experiment with modern living in the 20th century
0:28:46 > 0:28:50wasn't conducted on human beings but on apes.
0:28:52 > 0:28:58Here you see the luxurious new apartment which has been built for the two gorillas, Minor and Mug.
0:28:58 > 0:29:02The home is full of modern conveniences, including walls which can be adjusted according to weather
0:29:02 > 0:29:07and sunglass panels so they can retain their healthy jungle tan.
0:29:10 > 0:29:14So pleased was London Zoo with this pioneering structure,
0:29:14 > 0:29:16that a year later, Lubetkin won a second commission.
0:29:20 > 0:29:24And it was for this next building that Lubetkin really made his mark,
0:29:24 > 0:29:29creating an enduring image, an icon, of the modern movement in Britain.
0:29:32 > 0:29:34This was no mere zoo building.
0:29:34 > 0:29:42This was an ideological statement and the British public's first taste of hard-core modernism.
0:29:42 > 0:29:43The penguin pool.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49Lubetkin created a stunning stage on which the penguins
0:29:49 > 0:29:52would show off to each other and to the zoo's visitors.
0:29:53 > 0:29:58Reinforced concrete was a pioneering material he used to create the pool's central feature
0:29:58 > 0:30:02of intertwining ramps.
0:30:03 > 0:30:08Never before in Britain had concrete been used with such verve
0:30:08 > 0:30:12in such a minimalist, sculptural, daring fashion.
0:30:12 > 0:30:19In fact, this elegant, swirling form could only have been built with concrete reinforced with steel.
0:30:19 > 0:30:25But although a brilliant modern design, this must have proved a miserable home for penguins.
0:30:26 > 0:30:31What Lubetkin had overlooked or ignored was the lifestyle of the penguins.
0:30:31 > 0:30:35In summer, they were trapped in an open-air oven.
0:30:35 > 0:30:40And though the penguins seemed happy enough using the ramps, they totally ignored the diving tank.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47Neither were the gorillas happy in their concrete drum,
0:30:47 > 0:30:52and by 1939 had been moved out to more suitable surroundings.
0:30:52 > 0:30:57The penguins lasted a little longer in their modernist home,
0:30:57 > 0:30:59but today the pool lies empty.
0:31:01 > 0:31:05As with the gorilla house, the irony of a functionalist building not actually functioning
0:31:05 > 0:31:06was passed over.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10In fact, the popularity of Lubetkin's work at London Zoo
0:31:10 > 0:31:13helped launch modernism into the wider world,
0:31:13 > 0:31:20and in a sense, showed that the British public were at last embracing modernist architecture.
0:31:29 > 0:31:35When the public votes for Britain's ugliest buildings, brutalist architecture usually tops the list.
0:31:35 > 0:31:40Yet nearly £2 million of public money's been spent on renovating this building,
0:31:40 > 0:31:44while the same amount has been sought to demolish this one.
0:31:44 > 0:31:48Most people think brutalism is where modern architecture went too far,
0:31:48 > 0:31:50but I really admire this.
0:31:50 > 0:31:53The question is, do you have to be an architect to like brutalism?
0:31:53 > 0:31:57And what should we do with these spiky survivors of the '60s?
0:31:57 > 0:32:00Let's clear up one of the myths.
0:32:00 > 0:32:04It's not called brutalism because the architects wanted to be brutal.
0:32:04 > 0:32:08The tag comes from the French word brute, which means raw.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12The surface texture on these buildings is rough and ready.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15You can still see the grain of the wood used to mould the concrete.
0:32:19 > 0:32:25This was architecture trying to be totally honest about how a building's made and what it does.
0:32:25 > 0:32:30The style was pioneered in the '50s by big names like Le Corbusier.
0:32:30 > 0:32:35By the '60s, it was being used to rebuild post-war Britain.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38So when Portsmouth needed a new shopping centre,
0:32:38 > 0:32:42it got one of the first privately-built examples of brutalism.
0:32:43 > 0:32:47This is what the shiny future looks like now.
0:32:48 > 0:32:50This is classic brutalism.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53The forms are incredibly sculptural.
0:32:53 > 0:32:57There are access decks to walk around and the staircases and services are on the outside.
0:32:57 > 0:33:03I find lumps of concrete like this sexy. I've never seen such an expressive car park ramp.
0:33:03 > 0:33:10It was way ahead of its time. Richard Rogers's Lloyd's building was praised for similar details 20 years later.
0:33:10 > 0:33:15The Tricorn's architect insists there's nothing wrong with his original design,
0:33:15 > 0:33:18just with where it was built and how it's been treated.
0:33:18 > 0:33:20If it had been maintained,
0:33:20 > 0:33:23if it had actually had all the finishes that were necessary,
0:33:23 > 0:33:26the shiny shop fronts, the planting as well,
0:33:26 > 0:33:31I think people'll be less aware of its brutality. And I would have hoped,
0:33:31 > 0:33:36over a period of years, that people would have come to accept it, at least, if not actually enjoyed it.
0:33:36 > 0:33:42A lot of people have complained that this building looks ugly. What's your response to that?
0:33:42 > 0:33:45Well, I'm very surprised. A lot of people like the building.
0:33:45 > 0:33:49One thing I do find is that any piece of architecture
0:33:49 > 0:33:53worth being called architecture is usually both hated and loved.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55If people don't notice it, it's not architecture.
0:33:55 > 0:34:00Rodney has drawn up plans for how his building could be resurrected for the 21st century
0:34:00 > 0:34:03and is in talks with the site's developers.
0:34:03 > 0:34:06But Portsmouth Council is determined to flatten it.
0:34:06 > 0:34:11They want a European grant for it to be demolished, even before there are firm plans to replace it.
0:34:12 > 0:34:15The government won't protect the Tricorn by listing it.
0:34:15 > 0:34:19They said it's not unique.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23While the wrecking ball stands by in Portsmouth, builders are renovating
0:34:23 > 0:34:26London's shopping centre for the arts, the South Bank.
0:34:26 > 0:34:28It, too, was threatened with demolition.
0:34:28 > 0:34:30Some people still think that's a good idea.
0:34:32 > 0:34:37On your right-hand side, you will see the Royal National Theatre.
0:34:37 > 0:34:42It was described by Prince Charles to look like the back of a nuclear power station,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46and it was voted by the public as being one of the ugliest buildings within London.
0:34:46 > 0:34:47We don't quite agree with that.
0:34:47 > 0:34:52We think that building there to our right is the ugliest building in the world.
0:34:52 > 0:34:57My tour guide would have loved a plan for the Hayward Gallery in the '80s,
0:34:57 > 0:34:59which completely buried it under a bright new facade.
0:34:59 > 0:35:03A more respectful redevelopment has finally begun.
0:35:03 > 0:35:08I like the fact that it's an authentic piece of '60s design
0:35:08 > 0:35:10- and the fact that it's uncompromising.- Yeah.
0:35:10 > 0:35:13There are only three windows in the whole building
0:35:13 > 0:35:16and two of those were forced on the original designers. They didn't want them.
0:35:16 > 0:35:22Because there are no windows, it's all about surfaces and spaces.
0:35:22 > 0:35:26I've heard so many descriptions, like an adventure playground for Daleks,
0:35:26 > 0:35:28like a frozen Picasso sculpture.
0:35:28 > 0:35:32It's like a battleship peppered with pill boxes.
0:35:32 > 0:35:37And we're moving away from this idea of judging a building on whether it's ugly or beautiful.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Brutalist buildings are truly three-dimensional.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44They work, quite literally, on a number of levels.
0:35:44 > 0:35:49This makes them ideal for a sport which hardly anyone had heard of when they were built.
0:35:55 > 0:35:57This is skateable architecture.
0:36:00 > 0:36:05But just when people are learning to love brutalism, we're in danger of losing some of the best examples.
0:36:05 > 0:36:09As part of the latest plans for the South Bank, the skaters' undercroft
0:36:09 > 0:36:12and concert halls above it could be destroyed.
0:36:12 > 0:36:15I think it would be terrible to lose these, or the Tricorn.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18If nothing else, they should be saved as monuments to the '60s.
0:36:18 > 0:36:22An era which was much more heroic and ambitious than ours.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25What will future generations think if we knocked these buildings down now?
0:36:34 > 0:36:41995 flats, an average of three persons in a flat. So that's nearly 3,000 people in here.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43People don't like Park Hill.
0:36:43 > 0:36:46Some people don't, because of its outside appearance,
0:36:46 > 0:36:49but they don't come to look inside.
0:36:49 > 0:36:53And I don't mean inside of their houses, I mean inside the community.
0:36:53 > 0:36:59It's like being in heaven up here because we've always been poor people
0:36:59 > 0:37:04and these places are just lovely for us,
0:37:04 > 0:37:06either for old age or young age.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09What I like best about the kitchen is the sink unit.
0:37:09 > 0:37:12And then you've got the cooker, which is electric.
0:37:12 > 0:37:14Then this is the bathroom.
0:37:14 > 0:37:17It's got a nice heated rail.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20And along here is the living room.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24In here, again, you've got your central heating and nice big windows again.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27Altogether, we like it all.
0:37:32 > 0:37:36The Park Hill estate stands on a craggy slope above Sheffield.
0:37:36 > 0:37:38Completed in 1961,
0:37:38 > 0:37:43it was the most ambitious public housing scheme in post-war Britain.
0:37:54 > 0:37:59Park Hill didn't attempt to find a cosy British version of modernism.
0:37:59 > 0:38:01Its immense scale,
0:38:01 > 0:38:05its huge block zigzagging along the escarpment above the city -
0:38:05 > 0:38:09this was brutal modernism on a European scale.
0:38:14 > 0:38:20The idea was to build bigger new, but retain a sense of community.
0:38:21 > 0:38:24Three, four,
0:38:24 > 0:38:26five, six,
0:38:26 > 0:38:30seven, eight. Down. Down.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33These broad decks linking the flats
0:38:33 > 0:38:38were intended to evoke the community spirit of the traditional street.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42Here people would meet, gather, chat around the doors.
0:38:42 > 0:38:43Children would play.
0:38:43 > 0:38:46But it all happened up in the air.
0:38:46 > 0:38:52Very convivial. And unlikely as it seems now, it worked.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57People got to know each other very quickly.
0:38:57 > 0:38:59I played out there regularly.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02And I loved it, cos my mum and dad knew where I was.
0:39:02 > 0:39:08If I wanted to go to the playground at the bottom, they could look out of the window and see that I was there.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11Everything was new, it was sparkling, it was modern.
0:39:17 > 0:39:23Fridges, which not many people had fridges in them days... So everything - it was all a new experience.
0:39:23 > 0:39:28We could make ice-cubes to put in our drinks, you know. And it were just fabulous.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35We had everything on our doorstep. We had sweet shops, cake shops.
0:39:35 > 0:39:37You mention it, we had it there.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41We had a milkman, as well,
0:39:41 > 0:39:46that delivered milk every morning onto your doorstep.
0:39:46 > 0:39:51We had four pubs and every one of them in them days used to be full.
0:39:51 > 0:39:54It were just a great community to start with.
0:39:58 > 0:40:02In less than three decades, the estate was in trouble.
0:40:02 > 0:40:04What had been popular public housing
0:40:04 > 0:40:11now assumed a threatening aspect of an inner-city sink estate.
0:40:11 > 0:40:18The streets in the sky turned from being a focus of community life into a muggers' paradise.
0:40:20 > 0:40:23Now, it's become everyone's least favourite place to live -
0:40:23 > 0:40:25a concrete prison.
0:40:28 > 0:40:33Whichever way you look at it, Park Hill is something of a whodunnit.
0:40:33 > 0:40:39You can't help but feel that somewhere along the line, a crime has been committed against humanity.
0:40:39 > 0:40:46The problem is working out exactly what the crime is and who's the guilty party.
0:40:50 > 0:40:55For some, it's the architects who are to blame because, whatever their worthy ideals,
0:40:55 > 0:41:00they imposed an alien concrete megastructure on the people of Sheffield.
0:41:02 > 0:41:07But others argue that the early happy years of Park Hill would have continued
0:41:07 > 0:41:11if only it had been properly managed and maintained by the local authority.
0:41:16 > 0:41:23The battle to apportion blame goes on as ferociously today as it ever did.
0:41:35 > 0:41:40About 50 years ago, there was a positive outbreak of house-building fever
0:41:40 > 0:41:45as councils decided they wanted to move their populations out of the noisy, smelly centre of the city
0:41:45 > 0:41:47and put them in purpose-built estates.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51And here in Swansea, they had all sorts of experimental answers,
0:41:51 > 0:41:55and other councils used to come and have a look and see how they were getting on,
0:41:55 > 0:41:58and make their choices from the things they could see in Swansea.
0:41:58 > 0:42:02Now we're told there've got to be millions more houses,
0:42:02 > 0:42:06but for people of my generation, this brings us out in a rash.
0:42:06 > 0:42:10We worry. Are we going to make the same mistakes all over again?
0:42:12 > 0:42:18The idea then was that people would live over there, shop over here, work over there and play...
0:42:19 > 0:42:25The only trouble is that everything needed to be linked by an efficient network of roads.
0:42:27 > 0:42:32The ring road, the link road, the trunk road - thousands of roads.
0:42:35 > 0:42:41And it seems, far from linking us, it has the effect of shoving us all in cars.
0:42:41 > 0:42:45Walking anywhere seems downright perverse.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52Well, we're building again.
0:42:52 > 0:42:55And this time, it's going to happen in the areas where dirty,
0:42:55 > 0:42:58heavy industry of the past has been cleared away.
0:42:58 > 0:43:01This is not only regeneration, it's a new vision,
0:43:01 > 0:43:06which is is to free ourselves from giant link roads,
0:43:06 > 0:43:10by putting work, play and housing all in one area.
0:43:10 > 0:43:15Much as it was, wasn't it, in our original cities?
0:43:15 > 0:43:22Who's to say that all these new ideas are that much more effective or right?
0:43:22 > 0:43:26Because everybody had faith in the old ideas.
0:43:26 > 0:43:28I think it was very much...
0:43:28 > 0:43:31At that time, it was a very top-down approach.
0:43:31 > 0:43:33It was, "We know best. We're going to do this."
0:43:33 > 0:43:36And it was all about massive development - the scale was massive.
0:43:36 > 0:43:40Whereas I think now we're realising that you've got to involve the local community.
0:43:40 > 0:43:43So partly it's about scale and involvement.
0:43:43 > 0:43:47If you start with the idea of quality and you say quality's going to be about good design,
0:43:47 > 0:43:53that involves using top architects, and top architects are quite expensive, aren't they?
0:43:53 > 0:43:56Yes, but again, it'd be worth finding out.
0:43:56 > 0:44:01And you learn from experience that, unless you get that high quality, then you eventually pay for it.
0:44:01 > 0:44:05We're not just competing with Wales and the rest of the UK. We're competing with Ireland,
0:44:05 > 0:44:10with other parts of Europe. We're competing with America. So it's got to be about quality.
0:44:10 > 0:44:14But it's not just about the quality design. Are the buildings sustainable?
0:44:14 > 0:44:18Whether they're residential or whether they're offices.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20Are they low in energy use?
0:44:20 > 0:44:23But also, is it sustainable and accessible in transport terms?
0:44:23 > 0:44:28There's no point putting huge developments in and people have got to use cars, their cars,
0:44:28 > 0:44:31in order to get to their work or shopping.
0:44:31 > 0:44:36But is there a sense that these flats are just for wealthy people?
0:44:36 > 0:44:39Some of them are, but there will also be development for social housing.
0:44:39 > 0:44:42The old marina, Maritime Quarter of Swansea,
0:44:42 > 0:44:46has a mix of private-sector development and social housing. And it's worked.
0:44:46 > 0:44:51We've found from experience that having isolated developments,
0:44:51 > 0:44:54particularly in the cities, just doesn't work and you need that mix.
0:44:54 > 0:44:56But what do the locals think?
0:44:56 > 0:45:00It does look glamorous. It looks much better than the other side, definitely.
0:45:00 > 0:45:03They are quite stark compared to this development,
0:45:03 > 0:45:06which is far more interesting to look at as a building.
0:45:06 > 0:45:08And have they been a success, do you know?
0:45:08 > 0:45:13Well, I know for a fact, a friend of mine was the quantity surveyor on this project
0:45:13 > 0:45:17and virtually these flats were sold out before the project was finished.
0:45:17 > 0:45:21I think people are pleased that Swansea is getting some development.
0:45:21 > 0:45:24I think a lot of people think all the development goes to Cardiff,
0:45:24 > 0:45:28and they like it that Swansea is having a lot more development here.
0:45:28 > 0:45:32I love this Swansea-Cardiff thing! To somebody coming in, we know that one way or another,
0:45:32 > 0:45:36it all comes down to the fact that Cardiff gets what Swansea doesn't!
0:45:45 > 0:45:47MUSIC: "Wonderful Copenhagen"
0:45:47 > 0:45:51# Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen! #
0:45:51 > 0:45:55Welcome to Copenhagen.
0:45:55 > 0:45:58# Once I sailed away But I'm home today... #
0:45:58 > 0:46:05When I was RIBA President, we gave Copenhagen our first European City Of The Year award
0:46:05 > 0:46:09for its very people-centred approach to planning.
0:46:09 > 0:46:12And that's why Copenhagen's such an inspiration.
0:46:12 > 0:46:16It's also a city with rough corners - no Paris or Milan.
0:46:16 > 0:46:20A city with an historic harbour at its heart, a similar climate to the UK,
0:46:20 > 0:46:25and 40 or 50 years ago, a city that had lost its way.
0:46:31 > 0:46:35At the forefront of this people-focused approach to regeneration
0:46:35 > 0:46:38are the world-renowned Gehl Architects,
0:46:38 > 0:46:44and I'm going to meet partners in the firm, Helle Soholt and Lars Gemzoe.
0:46:45 > 0:46:50What do they think creates the perfect living street?
0:46:50 > 0:46:53I think it's very important that there is
0:46:53 > 0:46:56a mix of pedestrians, bicycles, cars.
0:46:56 > 0:46:59A mix of small shops, bigger shops.
0:46:59 > 0:47:03Some shops are down in the basement, others are on the ground floor.
0:47:03 > 0:47:05We have people living on top in apartments.
0:47:05 > 0:47:10There is a great mix of activities taking place
0:47:10 > 0:47:14and that is why this is working as a 24-hour street.
0:47:14 > 0:47:17- So it's a vertical and horizontal mix?- Yes. Yes.
0:47:17 > 0:47:20I think there's an interesting change here in Copenhagen
0:47:20 > 0:47:23when it all started to make the environment better.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26The whole notion was that this is a shopping area.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30Today it's much more seen as a meeting place.
0:47:30 > 0:47:35People looking at other people is the key thing that we all love to do
0:47:35 > 0:47:39and it's also a way where public space becomes, in the best cases,
0:47:39 > 0:47:42the place where you can learn what society is.
0:47:42 > 0:47:47In sites that are underpinned by sound statistical data, how have you applied your studies?
0:47:47 > 0:47:53I mean, what have you discovered by watching, this people watching, that you're so good at?
0:47:53 > 0:47:55One of the things that we learnt out of this
0:47:55 > 0:47:59is how important it is to make people visible in the planning process.
0:47:59 > 0:48:05Just the sheer fact that we got information about what people actually do in public spaces.
0:48:05 > 0:48:10How would you set about deciding on priorities
0:48:10 > 0:48:13for regeneration of that sort?
0:48:13 > 0:48:17The most important thing is to ensure diversity.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20Diversity in public spaces,
0:48:20 > 0:48:23diversity in streets, diversity in parks,
0:48:23 > 0:48:30diversity in housing, so that you ensure in the very end, a diversity of people.
0:48:30 > 0:48:33Such diversity is often missing from UK developments.
0:48:33 > 0:48:36But in Copenhagen, there are examples all over the city.
0:48:36 > 0:48:40But how to see them all in the time?
0:48:40 > 0:48:45These city bikes are found on virtually every corner in central Copenhagen
0:48:45 > 0:48:48and they're free for anyone to use.
0:48:48 > 0:48:53You've just got to put in a deposit like a supermarket trolley and you're away.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56And wish me luck.
0:49:05 > 0:49:08This is brilliant.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11First stop is Sankt Hans Torv,
0:49:11 > 0:49:16a new public square that's been created in the place of a busy road junction.
0:49:16 > 0:49:21A good place to try some of Lars's and Helle's people watching for myself.
0:49:21 > 0:49:25I'm now going to play wildlife presenter.
0:49:25 > 0:49:29We're going to see how this species behaves in its habitat.
0:49:29 > 0:49:32Let's observe.
0:49:32 > 0:49:34VIOLIN PLAYS
0:49:38 > 0:49:40There's all signs of life here.
0:49:40 > 0:49:43There are people just sitting,
0:49:43 > 0:49:47standing, eating,
0:49:47 > 0:49:49just lying and sopping up the sun.
0:49:49 > 0:49:51The kids playing.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56There are courtship displays.
0:49:56 > 0:50:00And there's even a a guy over there who seems to be totally passed out.
0:50:03 > 0:50:06It's no accident that this place is popular.
0:50:06 > 0:50:10It's a very thriving mixed-youth area with people living, working.
0:50:10 > 0:50:16There are live uses at ground floor. There's a kiosk in the square. There are cafes.
0:50:16 > 0:50:19And there are proper corner shops where you can buy useful things.
0:50:19 > 0:50:24There are places you can put your bike. You can even climb on this work of art.
0:50:24 > 0:50:29It has become a real urban village green.
0:50:29 > 0:50:34And that is the approach we need if real regeneration is to work.
0:50:44 > 0:50:48When a 2½ mile section of elevated motorway opened in West London,
0:50:48 > 0:50:54residents were faced with six lanes of traffic hurtling past their homes at bedroom level.
0:50:54 > 0:50:56ALL CHANT
0:50:56 > 0:51:01All the traffic is pouring past here. It's light at the moment.
0:51:01 > 0:51:04By three days, four days, it'll be intensely heavy.
0:51:04 > 0:51:10Meanwhile, the families in this road and the 142 children, like the youngster here,
0:51:10 > 0:51:14will have to sleep in the front rooms because there's no room at the back.
0:51:14 > 0:51:20And we're planning more demonstrations unless they assure us that something is going to be done.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22- All your neighbours are leaving. - Yes.
0:51:22 > 0:51:26- Do you wish you were going with them?- I do. I've lived in the street all my life
0:51:26 > 0:51:28and I want to get out now.
0:51:28 > 0:51:31But the Westway was only the start.
0:51:31 > 0:51:35There was a much more radical plan in the pipeline.
0:51:35 > 0:51:40Inspired by American freeways, it was called the motorway box.
0:51:40 > 0:51:4530 miles of elevated motorway forcing its way through central London.
0:51:47 > 0:51:51It is a controversial proposal, since it involves a complete ring
0:51:51 > 0:51:55of four- and eight-lane highways so close to the heart of London.
0:51:55 > 0:52:00The motorway box will be driven through some of the most densely populated parts of London.
0:52:00 > 0:52:03With the newly opened Westway there for all to see,
0:52:03 > 0:52:07Londoners realised what the impact of the motorway box would be.
0:52:10 > 0:52:15Well, I object to having things steamrolled over me
0:52:15 > 0:52:20without being able to say what I feel. And I've found that a great many people felt the same way.
0:52:20 > 0:52:26Homes Before Roads's campaign believes things have been got out of perspective by County Hall.
0:52:26 > 0:52:32Homes Before Roads was a new political party, formed to fight the proposed motorway box.
0:52:32 > 0:52:36That has been boosted up to a position that will dominate London.
0:52:36 > 0:52:41The scale of the proposals was extraordinary.
0:52:41 > 0:52:47The so-called motorway box went through Kensington, Battersea,
0:52:47 > 0:52:50Lambeth, Hackney, Camden.
0:52:50 > 0:52:53Tight-built Victorian terraces.
0:52:53 > 0:52:59So it was going to be this huge motorway, in many cases elevated,
0:52:59 > 0:53:02through all the inner-London boroughs.
0:53:02 > 0:53:04How can you build any new road through London
0:53:04 > 0:53:07without taking down somebody's house?
0:53:07 > 0:53:08Well, I think this is obvious.
0:53:08 > 0:53:12You will take down somebody's house in building a new road
0:53:12 > 0:53:16but, in fact, we're talking here of taking down the houses or the homes
0:53:16 > 0:53:17of hundreds of thousands of people.
0:53:24 > 0:53:27Homes Before Roads succeeded in putting up over 80 candidates
0:53:27 > 0:53:32in the 1970 Greater London council elections.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35This is a borough in which the so-called motorway box
0:53:35 > 0:53:39is expected to cut a swathe through the housing.
0:53:39 > 0:53:45And there has been a very great deal of interest to see how many boats the Homes Before Roads candidates
0:53:45 > 0:53:48take away from the traditional parties.
0:53:48 > 0:53:53The Conservatives won the election and were committed to building the motorway box.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57It was a defeat for Homes Before Roads, but they would have the final victory.
0:53:57 > 0:54:01When Labour regained control of the capital three years later,
0:54:01 > 0:54:05they immediately dropped the motorway box.
0:54:10 > 0:54:16Opinion was changing about building motorways in London.
0:54:16 > 0:54:18Modernism was very destructive.
0:54:18 > 0:54:23It was very narrowly focused on getting modern roads built,
0:54:23 > 0:54:30getting comprehensive development done, and it didn't pay very much attention to the people themselves.
0:54:32 > 0:54:38Around the end of the '60s, beginning of the 70s, there was a huge flip change
0:54:38 > 0:54:40in popular attitudes,
0:54:40 > 0:54:44from a belief in wholesale reconstruction of cities
0:54:44 > 0:54:49around the car, to a belief in conservation, preservation
0:54:49 > 0:54:56of the existing city, limiting the impact of the car on the city to the maximum extent possible.
0:54:56 > 0:55:02It was one of the biggest and most sudden psychological changes I've ever observed
0:55:02 > 0:55:06and I think that ever occurred in the history of the 20th century.
0:55:20 > 0:55:22One of the local members said,
0:55:22 > 0:55:26"Well, you know the route goes through Britain's best butterfly wood, don't you?"
0:55:26 > 0:55:29And that was it.
0:55:29 > 0:55:34That was something that would get people interested.
0:55:34 > 0:55:37Butterflies and bunny rabbits always do it for people.
0:55:37 > 0:55:4141 of Britain's 53 species have been recorded here,
0:55:41 > 0:55:46and Friends Of The Earth campaigner Joe Weston is waging an uphill struggle to save them from the M40.
0:55:46 > 0:55:50We've got some very, very rare butterflies here. Purple Emperor and the Black Hairstreak.
0:55:50 > 0:55:54Fast disappearing from the British countryside, in very much danger
0:55:54 > 0:55:58of disappearing from this environment if the motorway's completed.
0:55:58 > 0:56:03Once we'd made those arguments and we'd had the cameras out and the press out once,
0:56:03 > 0:56:06where do you go from there? What happens next?
0:56:06 > 0:56:10The environmental group Friends Of The Earth have come up with a new ploy
0:56:10 > 0:56:13for making life difficult for the motorway planners.
0:56:13 > 0:56:20We decided to buy this field and then sell off the land in small plots
0:56:20 > 0:56:24to thousands of people, hopefully all over the world,
0:56:24 > 0:56:28- that would then completely- BLEEP- up their compulsory purchase process.
0:56:28 > 0:56:32But Joe needed publicity for his cunning plan.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35Lewis Caroll had been a regular visitor to Otmoor
0:56:35 > 0:56:39and it was the inspiration for Through The Looking Glass.
0:56:39 > 0:56:43"For some minutes, Alice stood without speaking, looking out
0:56:43 > 0:56:48"in all directions over the country, and a most curious country it was.
0:56:48 > 0:56:53"There were a number of tiny little brooks running straight across it from side to side.
0:56:53 > 0:56:58"'I declare it's marked out just like a large chessboard,' Alice said at last."
0:56:58 > 0:57:04And so Joe renamed his field Alice's Meadow.
0:57:04 > 0:57:06This wasn't any longer just wildlife.
0:57:06 > 0:57:11This wasn't any longer just landscape. This was cultural heritage as well.
0:57:12 > 0:57:16Home in the summer of many of Britain's rarest butterflies
0:57:16 > 0:57:21and a scene which it's said inspired Lewis Caroll's chessboard landscape in Alice.
0:57:21 > 0:57:26The idea of turning all this could frustrate the government's efforts to complete the motorway.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29One afternoon, we had the BBC,
0:57:29 > 0:57:33the head of the Department Of Transport, the Minister Of Transport.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35He's a member of a cabinet that can make laws.
0:57:35 > 0:57:37ITV, Breakfast Television.
0:57:37 > 0:57:42If the route is approved, then notices will have to be served on all the landowners.
0:57:42 > 0:57:46We even had a crew that had flown in from Sidon.
0:57:46 > 0:57:51Israeli tanks had been shelling the hotel that they were in the day before.
0:57:51 > 0:57:56The next day they'd flown to Otmoor to film this story for NBC.
0:57:56 > 0:58:01This plot of land where I'm standing belongs to Alex Warman of Oslo in Norway.
0:58:02 > 0:58:07And this one belongs to Alan Parker of Melbourne.
0:58:07 > 0:58:12This field has been divided into 3,000 separate plots.
0:58:12 > 0:58:17Friends Of The Earth have sold those plots to 3,000 different people from all over the world.
0:58:19 > 0:58:25We were even interviewed by the Tokyo Times. It was just amazing.
0:58:25 > 0:58:28We could have sold England. It was incredible.
0:58:31 > 0:58:39When the M40 was finally built, its route avoided Otmoor and today, it still remains untouched.
0:58:48 > 0:58:51Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:51 > 0:58:54E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk