Five of Scotland's best Grand Designs homes as show celebrates 25 year anniversary

-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Grand Designs is a quarter of a century old and in that time viewers have seen homes built from shipping containers to a cottage hewn into the rocks and a lighthouse-style mansion perched on a clifftop.

Fans of the Channel 4 series have avidly watched monster builds, and all the ups and downs they entail with presenter Kevin McCloud running the rule over the finished products.

But he said despite the trend for bigger houses, his favourites are sometimes the ones that are the simplest in terms of the design.

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The 65 year old said: "My favourite ones are always the most intriguing, difficult, the longest, the ones that are complex in terms of how they’re brought into being, but sometimes the simplest in design. I can’t deny sometimes the projects are a bit nuts but that is part of the lure."

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Kevin will present a 25th anniversary special series which will showcase the programme's greatest and greenest self-build projects, which starts tonight.

And he's written a book, Grand Designs at 25, in which he has chosen his personal stand-out builds. Some of the projects in Scotland have been notable. Here's five of the best north of the border.

Clifftop House

Portpatrick, Dumfries & Galloway

Clifftop House Pic Channel 4
Clifftop House Pic Channel 4

The old military radar station perched high on rugged cliffs featured on the first episode of the 2019 series and looks like something out of a spy movie. The glass fronted two-bedroom building with spectacular views over the Irish Sea was a favourite with viewers thanks to its unique outlook and bizarre lay out.

Hope House

Pathhead, Midlothian

Hope House
Hope House

This 11-year labour of love was described by presenter Kevin McCloud as his dream home and sold for £1.2million in 2018. The glass fronted five bedroom property with panoramic view of the countryside has two kitchens, an indoor garden, a TV room, and its own orchard.

Kendram Turf House

Isle of Skye

Kendram Turf House Pic Channel 4
Kendram Turf House Pic Channel 4

The larch-clad house, which is situated on the most northerly tip of Skye, featured on series 12 and was another one of Kevin McCloud’s favourite ever builds. The eco-home boasts a grass roof, stunning views and open plan living in one of Scotland’s most stunning locations and has been built to withstand some of the nation’s most extreme weather conditions.

Airfield House

Strathaven, South Lanarkshire

Airfield House
Airfield House

Set in the middle of an airfield, it’s not your typical location for a home, but the views are impeccable. The unique home, which featured in the 2011 Grand Designs series wasn’t completed until 2019.

Built on the oldest continually used airstrip in Scotland, the property was the vision of a couple who ran the neighbouring microlight flying school and boasts a curved roof and a rounded glass balcony.

Stilwater Loch House

Killearn, Stirlingshire

Stilwater Loch House
Stilwater Loch House

The spectacular light-filled glass pavilion looks out over a private trout loch in Scotland and has beautiful views of the Campsie Hills. It featured on Grand Designs in 2009. The open plan five bedroom house, which is set in six acres, has been divided into different levels and boasts a floating glass staircase and was described by Kevin as a ‘glamorous viewing box.’

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