Country Life's top 10 architecture stories of 2019, from Old London Bridge to the Brighton Pavilion
Though we may of course be biased, but Country Life's team of architecture writers do justice to the greatest buildings in Britain in a way that nobody else does.


The story of Old London Bridge
Dorian Gerhold's article on 'the iconic landmark which vanished from the capital’s skyline' was fascinating — and the illustration by Stephen Conlin bringing the bridge to life was sublime.
Inside The Travellers Club, the oldest club on Pall Mall
Country Life's ability to take readers behind closed doors shone with this article about an iconic club's purpose-built Renaissance palace.
The Devon Mansion that dreamt it was Versailles
Marcus Binney looked at the notable history of Oldway Mansion, an outstanding, but little-known treasure that faces an uncertain future.
Blenheim Palace's lost ballroom re-discovered after 250 years underwater
The lower rooms of Sir John Vanbrugh’s famous Grand Bridge at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, emerged — albeit temporarily — for the first time in 250 years.
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The 600-year-old barn that's the largest standing medieval timber-framed structure in Britain
A restoration raised questions, but Edward Impey said that 'the Great Barn will continue to impress, to encourage the appreciation of such magnificent buildings and connect us today with the essential aspects of our history they represent.'
Inside the home of the Prince of Wales's favourite architect
Clive Aslet paid a visit to the house of Quinlan Terry.
I've just bought a house. It doesn't have five bedrooms, but 50.'
Avington Park, a house with 'a rare ability to beguile strangers', had some wonderful tales to tell.
From medieval castle to comfortable home – and back again
The Benington Lordship in Hertfordshire started life as a medieval castle, but has been transformed over the centuries into a comfortable house with ambitious neo-Norman additions.
‘It’s hard to imagine a more perfect time to visit this extraordinary Regency creation’
John Goodall on the sumptuous restoration of one of the most famous Regency buildings in Britain: the Royal Pavilion in Brighton.
The Arts-and-Crafts house built to house an extraordinary collection of oddities and rarities
Harold Moffat's collection started with a chance find in 1880. By 1912, however, his collection had grown to such a size that he commissioned Guy Dawber to build a new house to display it: Hamptworth Lodge, on the northern edge of the New Forest in Hampshire.
The photographs (and photographers) who shaped the English country house style from the 1900s up to today
To coincide with the publication of his new book illustrated from the archives of Country Life, 'English House Style', John
Ardgowan House: An 'almost miraculous' survival with a fascinating history
Ardgowan House in Renfrewshire, the seat of Sir Ludovic Shaw Stewart, is a remarkable building that's coming back to life,
New College, Oxford: The 650-year story of the college that dreamt it was a palace
John Goodall looks at New College, Oxford, the most widely copied university college in England, a building inspired by a
Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by HRH The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.
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The fate of the last wolf in Britain? Country Life Quiz of the Day
Our daily quiz tests your gut instinct, powers of deduction and downright luck. Unless you happen to know all the answers for sure.
By Toby Keel Published
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How to make an ethereal-sounding seafood, spinach and asparagus puff-pastry cloud
Our Kitchen Garden Cook's recipe for a stuffed puff-pastry cloud is easier to make than it is to say.
By Melanie Johnson Published
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'A glimpse of the sublime': Inside the drawing room of the 'grandest Palladian house in Ireland'
The redecoration of the drawing room at Russborough House in Co Wicklow, Ireland, offers a fascinating insight into the aesthetic preoccupations of Grand Tourism in the mid 18th century. John Goodall explains; photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
By John Goodall Published
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The ideal of the Scottish castle: Aldourie's joyful fantasy of turrets, invention and recreation
The process of stitching together the architectural fabric of the Aldourie estate in Inverness-shire has created an outstanding group of new and restored buildings. John Goodall explains more; photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
By John Goodall Published
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Brutalism and the Bauhaus in Britain
Adrien Brody won the Best Actor award for his turn in ‘The Brutalist’, playing the role of Lazslo Toth, one of the key movers in the architectural movement. Will Hosie takes a look at the legacy of Brutalism in Britain, looking at the best buildings both of Brutalism and the Bauhaus Movement which preceded it.
By Will Hosie Last updated
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Nature and nurture in the gardens of Bramham Park
Tim Richardson looks at the innovative and superbly maintained 18th-century landscape garden of Bramham Park in West Yorkshire, home of Nick and Rachel Lane Fox. Photographs by Paul Highnam.
By Tim Richardson Published
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The fire that destroyed Bramham Park — and the astonishing revival that it sparked
In the second of three articles on Bramham Park, West Yorkshire — the home of Nick and Rachel Lane Fox — John Goodall tells the story of the destruction of this house by fire in 1828 and its astonishing revival that continues into the 21st century.
By John Goodall Published
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Bramham Park: A Palladian premonition
Bramham Park is one of the most original and idiosyncratic houses of early 18th-century Yorkshire. Richard Hewlings examines its history and origins, and offers a fresh analysis of its architecture. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
By Richard Hewlings Published
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Seven of the UKs best Art Deco cinemas that help remind us of what we have (wrongly) long stopped expecting from public buildings
From the birthplace of modern cinema, to the home of the largest Wurlitzer theatre pipe organ in Europe, the UK’s remaining Art Deco cinemas are flourishing. Here are seven of the best.
By Amie Elizabeth White Published
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Brockfield Hall, the great Yorkshire house that's gone from Regency mansion to modern family home
Brockfield Hall in North Yorkshire is the family home of Charlie Wood and Hatta Byng, editor of House & Garden, who have transformed it since they came here in 2020, winning multiple awards in the process. John Martin Robinson reports on the restoration project that revived this compact Regency house as a modern family home. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
By John Martin Robinson Published