There's a Wocket in my Pocket

Guests at the Pocket event at the Swiss Church in Covent Garden

Innovative residential developer Pocket has something new up its sleeve that was revealed at an event last Thursday in London. The Swiss Church in London's Covent Garden was a great choice of venue, being just around the corner from Pocket's offices in Floral Street, and having a barrel vault that design director Russ likened to the Pocket philosophy in its efficient and attractive design.

Pocket's one-bedroom compact flats have proved hugely popular with their owners who might otherwise be priced out of owning their own home in London. The company is building on this success with the two bedroom, two person concept and this event presented the ideas of nineteen architectural practices about how this could be done.

The London Housing SPG of November 2012 sets out the minimum required space for dwellings of different sizes in London, but standard 4.11 does not mention two bedroom, two person units. Pocket has established that that there is a market for this type of unit that includes joint buyers who are not a couple and single parents.

Thank you, Pocket, for an interesting and very social event. There were no wockets in attendance that I noticed. Perhaps they were hiding with the wosset in the closet of one of the apartment models?

Russ Edwards of Pocket and Peter Murray prepare to present architects with commendation awards.

100 Buildings 100 Years

100 Years 100 Buildings exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts to celebrate the centenary of The Twentieth Century Society.

When I'm not talking about lifts, levels and loos I'm usually taking photographs. A photograph of mine of the entrance to Block D at Bletchley Park is included in the 100 Buildings 100 Years exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts. The exhibition and accompanying book of the same name celebrate the hundred years of design and architectural heritage that The Twentieth Century Society has worked to safeguard since 1979.

Block D was selected as the building for 1943 by Roland Jeffery, Director of the Historic Chapels Trust. Here's an extract from the text in the book:

“The brilliance of the Bletchley mathematicians, their cracking of Enigma, the creation of the world’s first electronic programmable computer on the site - all have captured the world’s imagination. But for me, D Block and its routine and dutiful drudgery is as worthy of remembering. ”

— Roland Jeffery, 100 Years 100 Buildings, published by Batsford, 2014.

Entrance to Block D, Bletchley Park in the Royal Academy exhibition 100 Buildings 100 Years.