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Piers Gough

Michael Berkeley’s guest is architect Piers Gough. With music by Handel, Monteverdi and William Walton.

Piers Gough co-founded his own architectural practice while he was still at college, at the age of only twenty-two. He made his name during the redevelopment of London’s Docklands, though you can also see his work in Liverpool (the golden “bling bling” building), in Nottingham, where he built a centre for Maggie’s cancer charity, and in Glasgow, where he designed the masterplan for the redevelopment of the Gorbals. He’s won numerous awards for his buildings, not least for his bright-green triangular public lavatory in London’s Westbourne Grove. And six of his buildings have been listed by English Heritage, protected for posterity. He’s been president of the Architectural Association, he’s a Royal Academician... which all sounds steady enough, but trying to sum up his style, the Architects Journal said: “One’s never certain whether one is in a town house, a country house, a castle, or a gigantic piece of sculpture.”

In conversation with Michael Berkeley, Piers Gough reflects on the challenges of designing for the modern city, and on the influence of the accident that broke his spine and which at one point made him doubtful that he would ever walk again. He shares, too, the surprise and fun of becoming a father in his sixties.

Music choices include William Walton’s “Belshazzar’s Feast”; Monteverdi’s haunting love duet “Pur ti miro”; Handel’s “Semele”; and Piers's favourite country-music track, “Truckstop Honeymoon”.

A Loftus production for ѿý Radio 3
Produced by Elizabeth Burke.

Available now

31 minutes

Last on

Sun 1 Mar 2020 12:00

Music Played

  • William Walton

    The Writing on the Wall (Belshazzar's Feast)

    Conductor: William Walton. Singer: Dennis Noble. Orchestra: Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
  • Claudio Monteverdi

    Pur ti miro (L'incoronazione di Poppea)

    Singer: Roberta Invernizzi. Singer: Sonia Prina. Ensemble: Claudiana Ensemble. Conductor: Luca Pianca.
  • Orlando Gough

    Perils of Tourism

    Ensemble: Man Jumping.
  • George Frideric Handel

    Endless pleasure, endless love (Semele)

    Singer: Rosemary Joshua. Orchestra: Early Opera Company. Conductor: Christian Curnyn.
  • Truckstop Honeymoon

    Truckstop Honeymoon

    Ensemble: Truckstop Honeymoon.
  • Maurice Ravel

    Daphnis and Chloe

    Orchestra: Los Angeles Philharmonic. Conductor: Charles Dutoit.
  • Paulo Vinicius

    Blue in the flame

    Composer: Tanya Wells. Ensemble: Seven Eyes.

Broadcast

  • Sun 1 Mar 2020 12:00

Podcast