Chin up, Northwick. We still love you
It was feted in its day as a striking example of modern architecture but Northwick Park Hospital was recently voted the ugliest building in Harrow in a London-wide poll of the capital’s least attractive buildings.
Northwick Park was designed by architect John Weeks who famously devised the over-all plan while in bed with flu in 1962.
Weeks was a prolific author of research papers on hospital design and was the creator of ‘indeterminate architecture’ which favoured the creation of a functional core which could be added to or rebuilt without disruption to the original building.
His vision wasn’t shared by London Facebook users who were polled about their least favourite buildings in the capital.
It was up against some concrete corkers including ‘Building A’ in Lewisham whose previous pedigree included being shortlisted for the Carbuncle Cup, the ‘Electric Razor’ in Southwark, and Wandsworth Coda building which one resident described as ‘looking like a chest of drawer in a teenager’s bedroom.’
It is worth pointing out that the hospital is in Brent, not Harrow, and that people make places. Northwick Park you may be grey and old but we still love you.