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New book Iconicon – can you help?

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Very excited that my new book, Iconicon, was announced today by Faber and Faber. It's a sequel to Concretopia, covering the period 1980–2017. Here's the press release. It will be published in 2020, and I'm currently knee-deep in research. But what is it all about?

Right to Buy. The Millennium Dome. Wimpey, Bovis and Barratt Homes. Grenfell Tower. These are some of the physical legacies of Thatcher, New Labour and the coalition. In Iconicon I'll travel around the UK to explore the history of our last thirtysomething years, how we lived and what we built, the places we made and the stories we tell about them – or hide.

Why do I need help? Well, apart from my ongoing mid-life crisis which led me to write Concretopia in the first place, each of my books has been a collaboration, with me telling the stories of people who were there at the time: the insiders, be they residents, workers, builders, planners or architects. These are not 'top down' stories, they are instead an attempt to show what people intended to make, the excitement of new plans and designs, and what it was actually like to live or work in the environments that were built .

If you've read Concretopia or Outskirts you'll know that it's the stories of people that bring what might have otherwise been dry or abstract histories to life: Bob and Irene surviving the Coventry Blitz and helping build the new cathedral; Ken Davie talking about how he worked on the planning team for Cumbernauld from start to finish; journalist Ray Fitzwalter telling how he uncovered the Poulson scandal while working on a local newspaper in Bradford.

And so for Iconicon I'm looking to find more interviewees. But now the story has moved to the 80s, 90s, 00s, right up to 2017. And you can probably guess some of the stories I'm desperate to tell. The right to buy. Toxteth riots. Postmodern Leeds. The design and development of private housing estates, from Brookside closes to marina developments, gated communities and beyond. Out of town business parks and shopping centres. Docklands. Manchester's rebirth. The Dome and lottery funded 'icons'. Eco homes. The architecture of devolution in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh. The rise of housing associations. PFIs. Hi-tech towers. Warehouse flats and hipsterfication. Gentrification and 'adding value'. Property programmes from Grand Designs to Homes Under the Hammer. Estate agents and investors. Lakanal House and Grenfell. The slow rise of Ebbsfleet. The rise and fall and rise of homelessness and repossessions. And lots of other stories I haven't even started to research yet.

Can you help? Perhaps you know someone who designed housebuilders' homes, or were the first move into a Docklands flat or warehouse conversion? Did you help build a PFI hospital or have your repossessed home sold at auction? Did you riot in Brixton or Broadwater Farm, or help plan or build Aztec West or out of town sheds or supermarkets? Did you sell flats in Belfast's Obel Tower or clean Manchester's Beetham Tower? Or were you involved in any of the stories above. I'd love to hear from you.

My email is dirtymodernscoundrel@gmail.com, or I'm @Grindrod on Twitter.

Oh, and it's pronouced i-conny-con.

The Battle for Docklands: the story of the LDDC

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Here's a film made in 1998 to help wrap up the London Docklands Development Corporation. Called The Battle for Docklands, the title is a little misleading, as it's a pretty rollocking 50 minute ride through a positively spun account of the building of London Docklands in the 1980s and 90s.





All the big names are here: Michael Heseltine, Lawrie Barratt and Geoffrey Howe among them. We see the desloation of the post-industrial site, the old east end residents and the new city traders with their big hair and suits, the ambitious machinations of the politicians, the bumpy rise of the planners and the strange ultra capitalist landscape that emerged. Here is Milton Keynes without the decision not to build higher than the tallest tree. The domestic scale postmodernism of that final new town is here transformed into fake warehouses and dockside flats. There's also a new hybrid form of decorative hi-tech, embodied in the mega form of Canada Tower, half-Chicago, half-deco Egyptian. Gotham modernism.







This is a fascinating documentary, whose triumphalist bombast must be treated with caution, just as all the earlier new town promotional films should be too. It's selling a dream, in this instance as much to the makers and planners of Docklands as to the residents and workers.

Outskirts – Shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize

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Two weeks ago I was amazed to discover that Outskirts, my book on growing up on the edge of the green belt, had been shortlisted for the UK travel and nature writing award The Wainwright Prize.

John Grindrod Outskirts with photos of his mum and dad

Find out more about Outskirtshere.

The longlist was full of authors I loved, and so I had no expectations of making it any further, so imagine my surprise to discover it had made it through. The shortlist is full of really cool books:

The Last Wilderness by Neil Ansell
Hidden Nature by Alys Fowler 
Outskirts by John Grindrod 
The Dun Cow Rib by John Lister-Kaye 
The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris
The Seabird’s Cry by Adam Nicolson 
The Salt Path by Raynor Winn 

I have been so lucky to have had such a great response from readers of Concretopia and Outskirts, and it's been that reaction that has kept me writing, so thank you. But Outskirts suffered from being published the same week as the snap election last year, and so disappeared somewhat. So this prize shortlisting has given the book I am most proud of a moment in the sun. Thank you to everyone who has supported it.

Here's a film shot at the shortlisting party at Waterstones Piccadilly. I was actually on holiday at the seaside that week, and popped back to London on what I think was the hottest day of the year, which may explain why (a) I'm so red and (b) my hair has stuck together into one large pointy spike.



Fingers crossed for the award ceremony, eh? Not that I imagine for one moment I will win, with all of these proper writers on the list. But for the moment I'm keeping the dream alive...

Interview with The Brutal Artist

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I've been getting a lot of questions about The Brutal Artist, the mysterious illustrator whose work has so enlivenedHow To Love Brutalism. So we conducted this email interview. Follow The Brutal Artist on Twitter and Instagram.



- How did you first get into illustration? Has it been a fascination since childhood or a more recent passion?

I've always been interested in art even as a child, but as the years progressed, it kind of fell by the wayside as other things started happening in my life, until the drawing aspect disappeared completely. It wasn't until 2014 that I started to pick up a pencil again. I was going through a bout of fairly serious depression and had a sudden thought of going back to watercolor (which I used to do all the time) and sketching. 

- Did you go to art school or attend art classes, or are you self-taught?

I did GCSE and A level art many years ago, but that's the extent of any formal training. The rest is down to picking up stuff as I went along.

- Do you have a typical way of working? Which mediums do you prefer to work in?

Usually it's sketching out a design in pencil and then going over in pen (unipin 01 if anyone is curious). Once all basic linework is done then I fill in the blocks of black with ink then do the detailed line work. 

However, I'll discover something new and then incorporate that. Recently I rediscovered charcoal which was almost joyous. It's taught me to try and relax and I find it somewhat liberating not having to be so meticulous with a sketch (even though it's a habit I struggle with). Laziness has also made me discover the joys of cross-hatching. I was doodling a sketch and really couldn't be bothered to lay out the brushes, pallet, ink and water so I just ended up cross-hatching the shadows and textures in. Although I do need to teach myself to do it properly as some sketches I've done just don't look right. So that's something I'll be working on in the coming months.

- How do you find time to draw? How long does it take you to complete an illustration? 

It's difficult. I'll set aside a day in which to work on sketches and when the time comes, I find I'm not in the mood to draw - this is happening frequently lately. But when I am in the mood I'll sit and draw for hours on end. Usually it takes me a week or so to fully complete an illustration. What I'll do is some rough sketches in pen and ink of one building, from several perspectives (what I call "finding the bones of the building". Then I'll pick an angle I really like and then do the final drawing in pen and just black ink. The sketches can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, the final drawing usually takes between 1 - 2 hours.
 
- You are well known for your architectural illustrations, what drew you to representing buildings? And why the fascination with brutalism?

I could come out with an answer where I extol the virtues of the ideology and aesthetic appeal of brutalism, however I'll go with raw, brutal honesty here. In my twitter bio it reads "I don't know much about architecture, I just like drawing it" and that's the painful truth. I really am ignorant of architecture, to the point where I can't remember which architect designed which building (I have an appalling memory) I have frequently disappointed people on twitter where they try and engage me in an in-depth conversation about architecture and Brutalism in particular. However, I am trying to educate myself as I think I really should know more about the buildings I'm drawing. I've started a collection of books on the subject and I'm slowly working my way through them: Elain Harwood's Space, Hope and Brutalism; Concrete Concept by Christopher Beanland; Brutalism by Alexander Clement and Raw Concrete by Barnabas Calder (oh, and How to Love Brutalism...) so by the end of reading those, I may remember enough not to embarrass myself.



I was drawn to Brutalism back in 2014. I had started to draw after what must be have been a 10+ years absence and tried drawing what I used to draw - nature, botanical etc and I was getting so frustrated with myself. Then I suddenly remembered going through a period of drawing buildings so I did an image search (I can't for the life of me remember what the search term was) and ended up with an image of Zuyev Workers Club in Moscow. It was incorrectly labelled as brutalist (I didn't know at the time that it was actually constructivist) so I searched for brutalist buildings. I found myself liking the style more and more and so focused mainly on that. For me it appealed to the sci fi/dystopian image that fascinated and terrified me as a child.

- Are there other subjects you enjoy drawing too? Is there an unbrutal side to The BrutalArtist?

I used to love drawing botanical watercolours but I now cannot draw anything like that, I'm absolutely rubbish. I do like zentangles and the repetition of marks. My main other creative outlet is crochet and knitting. I knitted two Doctor Who scarves as Christmas presents (to the original pattern) and I had a lot of leftover wool, so I'm currently crotcheting a Doctor Who blanket for the sofa.

- Do you have a favourite piece you have produced?

I have three: the close-up view of The Barbican, The Palace of Assembly and the St Paul's/Barbican mash-up, all in How To Love Brutalism. 

- What do family and friends think of your work? 

I think there's really only my Dad and one friend who genuinely likes the subject matter (he'll frequently send me links and photos of buildings), everyone else just appreciates the work gone into each piece. My mum HATES Brutalism, so every now and then I'll draw something she'll like! My husband appreciates the work and is extremely supportive. He's been trained well to spot Brutalism in things we'll watch, so he'll screenshot frames (Knight Rider and Wonder Woman have been screen-shotted frequently).

- Have you been surprised by the reaction to your work since you've been sharing it online?

I am absolutely stunned, to be honest. I don't do this for a living, it's strictly a hobby as I'm very much a beginner, I've only been drawing like this for 3 years so I've still a hell of a lot to learn. The reactions have been on the whole brilliant and people have been so lovely in their comments. It's all been very much appreciated and surprising.



- I was very excited to work with you on How To Love Brutalism. How did you approach the illustrations for the book?

Ditto! The invitation was absolutely a shock!. As to how did I approach the illustrations... with a lot of swearing John, with a LOT of swearing. When I received the list, I noticed there were a number of buildings there that I had been purposefully avoiding due to sheer cowardice such as Marina City, Habitat 67, Torres Blancos and Centre Point. However it dragged me out of my comfort zone and as it happened, those were the buildings that didn't cause me many problems at all.

I spent a couple of days doing image searches for various angles and trying out different perspectives. Then, when I had my final images chosen, I commandeered the dining table (I don't have a studio/specific area). I drew several sketches of each building and these formed the basis for each final piece. Some like The Tricorn Centre and The National Theatre (one of my absolute favourite buildings), I had drawn many times before, so those were no difficulty.

- Do you have any illustration heroes and what is it about their work that has inspired you?

My illustration heroes are mainly from childhood as these are the drawings and paintings that drew me in, imagining myself in the drawings/paintings. Peter Cross illustrated one of my favourite books ever, Trouble for Trumpets. Each illustration is filled with love and crammed with the most ridiculous detail. Kit Williams'Masquerade was a book I used to pour over as a child because the illustrations used to disturb and unsettle me and I used to return to it time and time again. One of my favourites is a guy who I can't even remember his name (maybe one of your readers will know who I mean). I watched a programme years ago with my dad, maybe early 90s, and it featured an artist who drew tiny little thumbnail drawings of fictitious cities with arches, hot air balloons, little towers etc and I remember a lot of cross-hatching. For a man whose name I can't remember, he's been an enormous influence. I'm also a big fan of Molly Crabapple, her work is absolutely exquisite and extremely thought provoking, she takes you places you're not comfortable going to but you end up learning a lot. I'll also give the film Akira (1988) an honourable mention.

- Are there illustrators or artists at work today you would love more people to take notice of?

I've stumbled across many on instagram that I had no idea were out there, most of them are way more known than I am, but still need a bigger following than they have because of their talent. Didouph does these amazing line pieces that are so atmospheric and have an unsettling effect (I love art that disturbs me in subtle ways). There's @albertchamillard who also does line pieces in old ledgers. People also need to check out Taylor Mazer (@tlmazer), that guy's talent is instance. He creates small pieces that on first glance could pass as photographs. I'm also a huge fan of Mandy Payne's (@mandypayne24 on twitter) work on concrete and stone lithography.

- Do you have any advice for someone keen to take up illustration, either as a hobby or professional?

Don't be afraid to go out of your comfort zone in terms of mediums and subject matter. If it doesn't work, who's going to know but you? Don't play it safe. 

- Are you pleased with the finished book?

I'm blown away by it. Your prose is engaging and educational and the book design is an absolute thing of beauty. Batsford have done a brilliant job on it. It's been a real honour to be asked to be part of the project.

Thank you to The Brutal Artist.

Interview with Outskirts illustrator Eleanor Crow

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In 2017 Eleanor Crow provided ten illustrations for my book Outskirts. Her work may be familiar to you from her celebrated cover illustrations for books such as Golden Hill or Grief is the Thing with Feathers, or her series of shop front illustrations showcased on Spitalfields Life. I asked her a few questions about her work. You can see more of her work on her website or on Twitter or Instagram.

From Outskirts© Eleanor Crow


- How did you first get into illustration? Has it been a fascination since childhood or a more recent passion?

I've been drawing and painting since childhood, but I hadn't planned to be an illustrator. I was more intrigued by theatre design at that time, and 3D stop-frame animation. We didn't have a TV, so anything I saw made a huge impression on me. In any case, I came late to illustration, as I was painting and printmaking first, and then designing book covers and bindings at Cape, Chatto and Vintage, then the Folio Society, and then Faber & Faber.

- Did you go to art school, or are you self-taught?

I have a BA in Fine Art: Drawing and Painting from Edinburgh, and an MA in Communication Design from Central Saint Martins. But many aspects of what I do are self-taught. We're always learning new things, from quite disparate sources.

- You have mastered many different styles. Do you have a typical way of working? Which mediums do you prefer to work in?

If I could, I would like to live many lives and do textiles, costume design, architecture, book design, animation, infographics, photography, printmaking and of course graphics and painting, which I still do. But illustration-wise, I work in watercolours mostly, and occasionally in line. In the watercolours, even the finest lines are painted with a brush. I work from real life where possible, and photographs if I have to for logistical reasons.

- There are lots of different reasons why people might know your work. There's your book cover illustrations for one. Are there any that you're particularly proud of?

I'm pleased with my cover illustrations for Golden Hill and Grief is the Thing With Feathers. For Golden Hill, I had been drawing canal-side houses for several days in Amsterdam just prior to reading the manuscript. The book is set in 1740s New York when it was New Amsterdam, and there's a wonderfully theatrical scene with figures running over the rooftops of townhouses lit up at night, so I used my drawings as reference for this. It's such a brilliant and spirited novel, and I was pleased at the response to the cover.



Grief is the Thing With Feathers was just a gift – it's a wonderful book, which I was given because of my name, and because the Crow is so deeply significant to the narrative. I'd been drawing crows on Hampstead Heath and in Wanstead Flats, so I simplified the shapes and silhouettes, trying to harness the spirit of Leonard Baskin, because of the Ted Hughes references in the book. I used to make big figure paintings in wide brushes using black ink, twisting a wooden brush end for the finer lines, so this is much closer to some of my college work. 

- Your paintings of shop fronts have also been very widely shared online thanks to Spitalfields Life and the Gentle Author. When you started that series of artworks did you realise what a massive project it was to become?

I had only done five when the Gentle Author saw the drawing I made of Arthur's Café. He was keen to publish a set of twenty-one on Spitalfields Life, so I had to produce sixteen in three weeks, cycling madly around East London boroughs. It was a project I had plans for already, but everything speeded up after that. I produced 100 for an exhibition, but the project is ongoing.

© Eleanor Crow

© Eleanor Crow

© Eleanor Crow

© Eleanor Crow


- You combine working as an illustrator and artist with being a graphic designer for book covers. Is that process very different from your illustration work?

It's completely different, but I like the variety of work involved in cover design, working with a range of photographers, illustrators, printmakers, as well as responding to literature and working with typography. There's so much interesting work around – so many exciting creatives that I would like to work with – so it's good to work in a collaborative way on book cover projects with so many of them.

- As a creative artist in your own right is it tricky working with authors? Is it a collaborative process or do you like working in isolation?

I like working with authors. I got into cover design because I read so much – in the end, it's about interpreting the text, but giving a book a distinct visual presence, whether for new writing or reinterpreting classics. Designing for print is an incredibly rewarding process, particularly books, which endure long beyond most ephemera.

From Outskirts© Eleanor Crow


- For the ten beautiful illustrations you completed for Outskirts I was incredibly lucky that you mentioned you were exploring architectural illustration, and we talked about our mutual love of Gordon Cullen. What is it about his work that appeals to you?

Gordon Cullen has such a brilliant understanding of form and light, and the importance of architectural and urban space that he termed 'townscape'. But what sets his work apart is how he expresses it in lively line and tone, and judicious use of occasional colour. Every one of his drawings is a little masterpiece.

Do you have any other illustration heroes and what is it about their work that has inspired you?
Miroslav Sasek, Paul Hogarth, Rena Gardiner and David Gentleman are some of them. Their work is very different, but each combines acute observation with brilliant technique, as well as something so distinctively their own.

- I know you commission other print makers and illustrators for your book cover work. Are there illustrators or artists at work today you would love more people to take notice of? If so, who are they?

Yes, there are so many. I enjoy finding new illustrators and have worked with many at the early stages of their careers, as well as other much more established illustrators and printmakers. I was pleased when 'It's Nice That' came along, as it's the perfect format for helping to launch lesser-known illustrators. People are much more alert to that now.

- Do you have any advice for someone keen to take up illustration, either as a hobby or professionally?

Never stop observing. Make a whole visual world that's fun for you and engaging for others. Always meet a deadline. Be nice.

- What would be your dream illustration job?
An illustrated book.

- Do you sell your work? Can you be commissioned for new projects? How can people get in touch to enquire about it?

I sell work at exhibitions rather than directly, and I can be commissioned via my illustration website. But if you're an illustrator wanting to get in touch with me about book cover work, then please go via the Faber website, not my own. I don't mix the two.

- Thank you, Eleanor Crow!

Sweeney on the South Bank

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The Sweeney is one of the best places to view 1970s London. More often than not taking advantage of all the remaining derelict bomb sites and unreconstructed parts of the city, the show features postwar London at its population low (two million fewer than either today or 1939). Parts of the city were allowed to lay undeveloped because the pressure was on building new towns and moving people out. Seems hard to believe in our urban-loving modern world.

But it's not all Granadas screeching around scrubland. Cover Story, an episode from the first season filmed in 1974 and first broadcast in February 1975, features a surveillance sequence shot at a very rainy London south bank. We see the high level walkways, the Festival Hall and the waterside, in that period where the centre had fallen from favour. Since the 1990s, refurbishment of the entire south bank has helped make it one of the favourite haunts, not just of of culture vultures, but of post-work drinkers and freelancers on laptops. Worth remembering that this was shot some 23 years after the Festival of Britain, closer to that than the construction of thr London Eye, whose site is plain to see here too, and just 6 years after the construction of the concrete walkways, Hayward Gallery and Queen Elizabeth Hall.








You can see the episode here. The sequence begins 22 minutes in.

My books...

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Clever me, after all these years I still haven't managed to round up my books in one place on my own website. So here goes.

John Grindrod, Concretopia, Outskirts, How To Love Brutalism

My first was Concretopia: A Journey Around the Rebuilding of Postwar Britain, described by Owen Hatherley as 'about the best history of the intersection of post-war architecture and politics (often with a small 'p') that you could hope for – personal, erudite, even-handed and driven by a subtle, but still present underlying anger at the dismantling of the Welfare State under the dubious banner of 'austerity'.'

My next was Outskirts: Living Life on the Edge of the Green Belt, which was shortlisted for the 2018 Wainwright Prize for British nature and travel writing. Lynsey Hanley said 'Grindrod writes beautifully about nature . . . a lucid, evocative book, suffused with sadness and anger.' And David Kynaston called it 'illuminating and enjoyable . . . tolerantly and unsentimentally, he gets us close up to the green belt as it actually is today . . . what truly lifts it is the personal element, above all Grindrod's portrayal of family life.' It contains illustrations by Eleanor Crow, and is also available in large print and an audiobook.

More recently I published a short and rather less serious book, part of Batsford's 'How to' books on architecture they've been publishing since the 1930s. Mine was called How To Love Brutalism and was illustrated by the brilliant Brutal Artist.

You can buy my books from your local indie or chain bookshop, or online from Hive, Waterstones, Foyles or Amazon.

Currently I'm writing a new book, a sequel to Concretopia, looking at the places we built and lived and worked in from 1980 to 2017.Iconiconwon't be out for a couple of years, but if you could help me find interviewees (housebuilders, home improvement show victims, millennium project workers, out-of-town pioneers, etc) that would be wonderful.

Thank you!

Pimlico, no passport required

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Here's a charmer from 1950, a film of the construction of Churchill Gardens estate in Pimlico, one of the first bits of postwar rebuilding in London.




It was designed by a couple of architects fresh from university, Powell and Moya were the team also responsible for the Skylon and the Museum of London. The tall slab blocks were placed at a right angle to the Thames so as not to block the views, and the architects were hired by Westminster's hiusing convener, one Parker Morris, whose interest in housing standards would prove inspirational. I've been making a Radio 4 documentary about Parker Morris and space standards, to be broadcast in February 2019, so I'm currently obsessed with Churchill Gardens.





Much of this short film concerns itself with the remarkable heating system for the estate, pumping hot water from batterseaPower Station across the Thames. Ingenous.



Coventry in the 1960s

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Here's a couple of films of Coventry from the early 1960s, when the pioneering shopping precinct and cathedral were newly open.

The first is from 1961 and shows the pedestrianised shopping precinct in action, and the cunning new solutions for parking cars. The footage is silent but remarkably good quality and interesting, full is brilliant people-watching opportunities, and some handsome shots of the circular cafe and the Locarno.










The second has sound and colour, and is from 1963. It's rather fuzzier, so the people-watching is less satisfactory, but there are lovely shots of Basil Spence's newly finished cathedral.






Denise Scott Brown and Robert Venturi in conversation, 1984

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This is a great interview with those pioneering postmodernists, Denise Scott Brown and Robert Venturi. Recorded in 1984, it's part of a series of interviews by Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel. They talk a lot about their love of Palladio and Lutyens and irony, and discuss their books and most famous buildings. It's a fascinating record. Also, the titles and theme tune are outrageous.







Eames House

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Here's a record of Charles and Ray Eames' house, recorded by the designers after 5 years of living there. As befits their jaunty infographic style the whole film is a montage of shots of the buildings and its environs, showcasing not the people but the colours, the materials, the patterns and the ephemera. Their house, with its Japanese paper-style walls and panels and Mondrian aesthetic, is filled with jaunty nick-nacks from around the world, and surrounded with huge trees that shade the buildings and make it look more modest than it actually is. The Eames's influence on a broad range of style, from product and furniture design to audio-visual communication and infographics is unrivalled. Their corporate work for clients such as IBM or Herman Miller was always masked behind the cutesy modern style they pioneered, to the point where this film only lacks a voice-over by Oliver Postgate to create a Clangers-style fantasia. It's gloriously entertaining and beguilingly beautiful, just as the house created by millionaire designers should be.

















Sydney 1973-75

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Given we're living IN THESE TIMES I thought I'd start posting a bit more regularly on here again, a bit of escapism to the postwar world.

Here's two cinefilms made in Sydney between 1973 and 75. The first is a very uppy-downy home movie film of the opening of Sydney Opera House taken from a boat in the harbour, and complete with our old friend and signifier of all things modern, the helicopter.








The second is a rather slicker home movie, using timelapse photography and a soundtrack of Donna Summer's I Feel Love to catalogue life in the city, from Koyaanisqatsi-style pedestrian crossings, to a magestic Autobahn-style moment of motorway freedom.






The Living City: London 1970

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Here we are in the City of London in 1970, the year I was born. This is a film made by the Corporation of London, and this print via the London Metropolitan Archives is great, if a bit wobbly.










Treats in store include the now demolished postwar rebuilding of Paternoster Square, the Blackfriars underpass under construction, Golden Lane newly opened and the Barbican being built. Lots of great people watching, including smoking in the office, beers on the elevated walkways and commuters flooding over London Brdge.







I took a lot of screenshots because it was hard to stop myself. Hope you enjoy it.







TV Cream Pocast – Signs of the Times: That Little Bit Different

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Travel back to the heady days of 1992 in this TV Cream podcast where novelist Rose Ruane and I chat about the Martin Parr-led documentary series Signs of the Times where residents describe their home decor. The show we're discussing is also on iPlayer and is a must-see if you're into mainlining the byways of John Major-era design and snobbery among white heterosexual couples.



The podcast is available to listen to on the TV Cream website and on Soundcloud

It is the end, but the moment has been prepared for...

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I've not posted on here for a long time, sorry about that. I am closing the blog now, dear old pal that it has been. Thanks so much for everyone who has read and shared posts, I really appreciate it. I have a shiny new website over at johngrindrod.co.uk for my books, writing and events, and I still post on Twitter and Instagram

Cheeringly, here's a song to end on, Talking Heads performing the rather marvellous Cities in 1983. Back when David Byrne could sing 'think of London – a small city' without irony. 

With much love and dancing, John x


Follow my new writing on Substack

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The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed that I stopped writing this blog a few years back. But I've been looking for somewhere to post new articles in its place, and have created a Substack email, which you can sign up to here. It's in some ways son of Dirty Modern Scoundrel, and something a bit different too.

I tend to keep my website up to date with news and links, so you can find me there too.

And my most recent book, Iconicon, is out now in hardback, ebook and audio.

 


Thanks so much for all the support, I really appreciate it, and here's to saying hello in some form or other soon. 


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