4/4 People's Palaces: The Gothic Revival

• People's Palaces: The ...
People's Palaces: The Golden Age of Civic Architecture :
Episode 2/2 The Gothic Revival.
First broadcast: 13 Sep 2010.
Architectural historian Dr Jonathan Foyle visits some of the best neo-gothic Victorian civic buildings in the north of England. Pointed arches, spires and clustered columns proliferate on churches and cathedrals, town halls and libraries, as gothic moves from the sacred to the secular through the 19th century and becomes the north's civic style of choice.

[@godfreyberry1599]

This is an absolutely sublime and perfectly presented series. Pity so few likes and comments. Testimony possibly of the direction civilization and substantial/meaningful art in all it's forms is headed since we are decisively programmed to seek the utopia of our own destruction. Yet, the very pinnacle of all civilisation continues to hide in plain sight and surrounds us, requiring only eyes to see and a mind to comprehend.

[@VitorEngRN]

The best documentary on Architecture I've ever seen. Thank you for this.

[@angusmcmillan8981]

Wonderful. What a fine presenter Dr Foyle is, has he made other documentaries?

[@v.g.r.l.4072]

Beauty everywhere. Thanks, Dr. Foyle.

[@gggreggg]

i am astounded!!!!

[@davidflory3597]

WONDERFUL!

[@jimlarsen6782]

Absolutely awesome!

[@jerebuck]

Superb.

[@zackstewart4109]

9:25 you can't say that on television!

[@13minutestomidnight]

4:58 Huh. I didn't know the Victorians invented acid. Good thing I know nothing about architecture because to me that looks mismatched, overcrowded and lopsided, like they joined 5 or 6 different buildings together without trying to all the many different styles cooperate (and then threw a group of assorted geometric shapes into the cornices).
11:25 Well, that entire part of the building just looks incredibly derivative of one of those huge very early Christian Churches (the ones with the enormous central open spaces, huge arches and circular domed roof). It's like he put in tiny points in the arches and copied the rest from a famous church in the Mediterranean - looks like a paltry copy too. I'm just really surprised that they managed to find a building so closely based on architecture I recognise (it's a short list, really).
13:10 Did he say they "Shaped our social conscience" of urban life? What, "everything in life depends on personal wealth (except what your business can hide for you", "pretty facades will distract people from the poverty and social problems (they'll go away eventually)", and "what do you mean "environmental concerns" (is that even a word??"
...Really good thing I'm not an architect...
Very enjoyable documentary btw.