Grand Designs 2023

[MR10]

For those who can still bear to watch these things...

New episode aired on Wednesday 27th Sept. Available on catch up/on demand.

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/grand-designs/on-demand/70446-005

[ProDave]

That turned out to be one expensive house, that was nearly double their "all we can afford" estimate at the start.

 

They had no concept of how to save money, e,g I would have made a habitable home in the existing building and saved building the new wing until you could have afforded it.

 

I think they said they could have bought 3 houses for the cost of building this one.

[Bonner]

I agree, shocking amount of money to spend especially when they had to borrow most of it. Can’t understand how they can afford the mortgage. No concept of value for money. I did like most elements of the build but not worth what they spent.

[MR10]

They borrowed a lot of money and I hope they're not forced to sell in a year or two to pay off their debts as I don't think they'll be able to sell that many sweets.

They wanted the best concrete finish for the areas on display and the areas covered up, expensive kitchen, didn't consider doing bits themselves.

Affordability aside though, the finished house was very lovely.

 

[Super_Paulie]

it looked a treat by the end, but a lot of "borrowing money from friends". Cant say id be comfortable with that, basically means they want to live beyond their means. 

[miike]

How many did you get on the Grand Designs bingo card?

[ProDave]

I got most of those.  Ne mention of Eco Friendly, and I didn't see two coats at once.

[Bonner]

To be added:

Kevin predicts the build cost

Kevin looks smug when he is right

Someone dies

[Super_Paulie]

"Pet shown relaxing in a building site" would be worth a drink.

[Kelvin]

Just watching it. Land for next to nothing. Got bequeathed a house. Already budget blown. A death. A pregnancy. No actual obvious source of income to service the loans other than selling sweets on-line. Award winning architects. Contractors that don’t like it. Great start. 😂 

 

The architect sounds like my wife’s departed architect father. He also quoted is the Frank Lloyd Wright line that a home should be off the hill not on the hill. Ours is on the hill although we cut some of it out! 

Edited September 29, 2023 by Kelvin

[joe90]

Unfortunately it makes good TV, entertaining the masses but not the likes of us buildhubbers.

[Kelvin]

I’ve had my own stresses this week. Started fitting the gutters to discover I’ve been supplied with too many of the wrong brackets and too few of the right brackets. Frantic phone calls, 4 hour round trip to Highland Industrial Supplies in Inverness and problem solved. Not sure I could cope with being 100s of thousands in debt and over budget. 😂 

[Kelvin]

I have to say, it’s a stunning house. Beautifully executed, despite the cost. But the monthly finance costs now given where interest rates are must be horrendous. 

Edited September 29, 2023 by Kelvin

[joe90]

Just watched it and yes beautifully done, but worth the financial burden?  Even the Oak flooring was near 2” thick , why? That alone must have cost a fortune .

[Pocster]

Kev’s a nob

 

Other things to add to grand design top trumps .

 

Excessively costed feature ( e.g curved roof , cantilevered feature )

 

Despondent music as project looks like failing before commercial break 

 

Upbeat music after commercial break as filming is now in spring 

 

Excessive rain on non water tight structure 

 

Kev’s expert contradictory view “ A medieval castle “ aka “ a monolithic mess “

 

Camera pulls back and up as Kev emits a meaningless sound bite to the camera in the final seconds of the episode . I always then tell him to get (expletive deleted)ed . 

[Pocster]

9 minutes ago, joe90 said:

Just watched it and yes beautifully done, but worth the financial burden?  Even the Oak flooring was near 2” thick , why? That alone must have cost a fortune .

What was the budget ? And final cost ? 

[ProDave]

I think they originally said £700K was all they had and it ended up almost £1.4m

[joe90]

So double the budget, sounds about right fir grand designs 🤯 I did think of @Pocster when they started down the steps into the underground tank 🤣

Edited September 29, 2023 by joe90

[SteamyTea]

7 minutes ago, joe90 said:

 I did think of @Pocster when they started down the steps into the underground tank

An underground wank

[Adrian Walker]

4 hours ago, Bonner said:

To be added:

Kevin predicts the build cost

Kevin looks smug when he is right

Someone dies

someone gets pregnant during the build

[Hastings]

All that needless carbon pollution (concrete) - was it filmed 30 years ago?

[Pocster]

3 hours ago, Adrian Walker said:

someone gets pregnant during the build

It’s a good excuse to stall the build . Must add that reasoning to my ‘elite’ aka useless tossers group .

 

” make a baby , not a house “ 

[SteamyTea]

2 hours ago, Hastings said:

All that needless carbon pollution (concrete)

Serious question.

Do we know how my concrete?

[Square Feet]

The water tank episode was horribly painful to watch. I'm sure Grandad wouldn't have wanted her saddled with all that debt. The episode this Wednesday (Scunthorpe) was much better.  A single dad with 300k and a free plot brought the build in for £375k and had a fantastic house to show for it. It could have been simpler and cheaper with less junctions (and I have my doubts about those heat panels) but he seemed happy with the end result. It was a pretty good price considering he did very little of it himself.