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A fate worse than demolition? The desecration of the original Bank of England, one of Georgian architecture's great masterpieces
This year is the centenary of the enlargement of the Bank of England initiated by Sir Herbert Baker. Clive Aslet asks whether the project deserves its reputation as an unforgivable act of architectural desecration. Photographs by John Goodall.
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John Goodall: Restoration is 'an act of recycling', but we need a system that encourages it
New-build is exempt from VAT, but the construction industry accounts for nearly 40% of global emissions of carbon dioxide. Something needs to change, says Country Life's architectural editor.
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170 years ago, a river of excrement ran through the centre of London, spreading stench, disease and death. The engineer and architect who cleaned it up deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Christopher Wren
The architect and engineer Joseph Bazalgette made a contribution to British life and the wellbeing of its people that cannot be overstated. Kate Green celebrates his life and legacy.
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The Castle Howard Mausoleum, a building so beautiful 'you'd almost want to be alive when buried in it', is facing its own demise
The celebrated Castle Howard Mausoleum is a dynastic monument to the Howard family, but it needs further restoration if it is to survive. Christopher Ridgway tells its story; photography by Paul Higham.
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Sweet civilisation: What do you get when you ask architects to compete in a gingerbread competition?
The Gingerbread City is back in London’s Kings Cross. Lotte Brundle pays it a visit.
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This Grade I Essex home was renovated by a Guinness and a notorious American diarist and photographed by Country Life — now it's a firm favourite with the fashion set
Kelvedon Hall was saved from demolition by Lady Honor Guinness and Henry 'Chips' Channon. Now it is the star of a Church's Christmas campaign.
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Northwold Manor: 'A place of delight once more after half a century of chaos and neglect'
A heroic restoration project has transformed Northwold Manor in Norfolk — home of Professor Warwick Rodwell and Ms Diane Gibbs — after more than 50 years of being left neglected. It has also illuminated its remarkable history, as John Goodall explains; photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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53 years ago, a Wren masterpiece was replaced with a glorified roundabout. We must not make the same mistake again
The plans to rid Christ Church Newgate Street of traffic should be cause for celebration — but a mistake as bad as the one made in the 1970s is about to happen, says Ptolemy Dean.
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War, ruin and renaissance: Dorfold Hall's 400-year journey through the ages
John Goodall describes the antiquarian rediscovery of Dorfold Hall, Cheshire — home of Charles and Dr Candice Roundell — and the recent spectacular renewal of this important Jacobean house. Photographs by Paul Highnam for the Country Life Photo Library.
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Country-house treasures: A papal seal of approval at Combermere Abbey
Country houses up and down the land are renowned for their great treasures. Here we take a look at some less-well known items in their collection that hold a deeper meaning to their owners.
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All fired up: 12 of our favourite chimneys, from grand architectural statements to modest brick stacks, as seen in Country Life
Nothing says winter like a roaring fire, and plenty of the houses that we've photographed for the magazine's architectural places have fireplaces and chimneys worth boasting about.
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Dorfold Hall: The 'most neat and beautiful house of brick' that owes its existence to a desperate effort to secure succession
Dorfold Hall in Cheshire is an outstanding Jacobean house, but was an unexpected product of dynastic disappointment. John Goodall examines the remarkable circumstances of its construction; photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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This Wiltshire masterpiece was vastly improved by an 18th century ‘Architect’ Earl and is now on the silver screen in the new 'Frankenstein' film
In the early 18th century, Wilton House in Wiltshire underwent improvement at the hands of the 9th Earl of Pembroke, an enthusiastic amateur architect. More recently it's become one of Britain's most coveted filming locations. Words by John Martin Robinson. Photography by Will Pryce and Simon Upton.
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From the archive: Sandringham House, the Norfolk home of The Royal Family
In 2008, Country Life was given extraordinary access to Sandringham House — including rooms not seen by the public. John Martin Robinson told its story, with photographs by Will Pryce for Country Life.
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Only a handful of Britain's great houses were photographed by Country Life in a ruinous state. This once splendid Gothic castle is one of them
This is the tragic tale of Tong Castle, a once great Georgian-Gothic castle that was eventually consumed by Nature.
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The Rococo jewel nestled into vineyard terraces that's a visual index of 'a king’s Enlightenment belief in knowledge, cultivation and the civilising power of Nature'
A summer picnic in 1743 prompted Frederick the Great to create a retreat for himself outside his capital at Berlin. The result was the creation of Schloss Sanssouci in Brandenburg, as Aoife Caitríona Lau explains.
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Where is 'The Traitors' filmed? Inside the Scottish castle sold via the pages of Country Life three times for an unbelievable amount
Melanie Bryans delves into the Country Life archives and uncloaks the history of the turreted Highland castle made famous by the global TV franchise, 'The Traitors'.
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The rise, fall, rise and eventual demolition of a Welsh wonder with an intriguing link to the Duke of Westminster
Melanie Bryan delves into the Country Life archives and the history of one of Wales’s most extraordinary manor houses.
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Exclusive: The House of Commons as you've never seen it before, 75 years on from reopening following its destruction during the Blitz
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the reopening of the House of Commons following the destruction of its predecessor in 1941 during the Blitz. John Goodall reports; photographs by Will Pryce.
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'A bluff, honest man in the trappings of greatness': The extraordinary story of the Foundling Hospital, and the sailor who saved the abandoned children of London
A remarkable charitable endeavour to save abandoned children on the streets of London has a touching legacy in the form of the The Foundling Museum in the very centre of London. John Goodall tells its story; photographs by Will Pryce.
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Stefan Pitman: Making great country houses cost less to heat than a suburban semi
The trailblazing architect Stefan Pitman — founder of SPASE — joins the Country Life Podcast.
