Gillian Darley is an architectural historian. Her books include John Soane: An Accidental Romantic (Yale University Press) and ‘Excellent Essex (Old Street Publishing.
The spirit of innovation and manufacture lives on in the Midlands city – as a redeveloped museum on the site of the old silk mill makes clear
Joseph Gandy’s dramatic paintings turned John Soane’s neoclassical designs into full-blown Romantic fantasies
The government’s plan for a grand national jolly has been widely lampooned – but perhaps it’s just what we need
The UK government’s proposal to protect every monument in sight is a kneejerk response that will have ridiculous consequences
Whether for grand prospects or compact residential buildings, it seems as though architects never tire of the crescent form
From his first Habitat shop on the Fulham Road to the Design Museum in Kensington – a celebration of the late designer’s many achievements
The Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy breathed new life into this ancient material in the 1940s – and it’s time it made another comeback
That we know so much about the day-to-day reality of the Great Plague of London is down to the diaries of John Evelyn and Samuel Pepys
What to watch in the world of architecture in 2020, from the race to become the world's tallest building to increasingly urgent conservation battles
The buildings erected in Asmara during Italian rule are remarkably forward-looking – and should not be allowed to crumble
