Grand Designs S12E01 · Cloontykilla Castle, Ireland

★ 10.0 Air date: 2012-09-12 45m

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Overview

The new series kicks off with a Grand Design on an epic scale, with the story of one man's heroic attempt to fulfil his childhood dream and bring back from the ruins an incredible castle set in one of the most beautiful landscapes of southern Ireland. Actor Sean Simons fell in love with the ruins of Cloontykilla Castle when he played there as a boy. Years later he bought it, with the idea of turning it into a spectacular, theatrical mock 16th century home, complete with grand baronial hall, luxury bedrooms, sweeping staircases, water spouting gargoyles, Jacuzzis in the battlements and a huge recording studio in the basement. But would it prove to be a magnificent personal masterpiece, or a garish sub-Disneyesque disaster? After borrowing an eye-watering 1.2 million Euros, Sean launches into his project just as Ireland plunges into recession. He has a head full of fairy tales, but no help from an architect, or indeed any formal plans whatsoever. Making things up as you go along is fine if you're building a toy castle, but not when you've got a large team of builders on site, a schedule to hit and the bank looking over your shoulder. Over two years, rooms are built, then knocked down again. Contractors walk out in frustration. Planning permissions are ignored. But somehow Sean's vision starts to come alive... just as Ireland collapses into financial meltdown.

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  1. 1 1. Cloontykilla Castle, Ireland2012-09-12 · 45mThe new series kicks off with a Grand Design on an epic scale, with the story of one man's heroic attempt to fulfil his childhood dream and bring back from the ruins an incredible
  2. 2 2. The Computer Cut House, Herefordshire2012-09-19 · 45mKevin meets a pair of civil-partnered university professors, Celia Brackenridge and Diana Woodward.  They have enlisted the services of industrial designers who have developed a
  3. 3 3. The Glass Cubes House2012-09-26 · 45mIn Brixton in south London design-mad couple Mary Martin and Carl Turner want to build a home that resembles a giant stack of glass cubes that's a Zen retreat from the noise and ch
  4. 4 4. The Thames Boathouse2012-10-10 · 45mKevin McCloud follows Lysette and Nigel Offley, who are knocking down an old Thames boathouse and constructing a cutting-edge home in its place. Taking inspiration from the river i
  5. 5 5. The Derelict Water Tower2012-10-17 · 45mKevin McCloud marks the 100th episode with one of the programme's most ambitious projects to date. Leigh Osborne and Graham Voce want to convert and extend a landmark 150-year-old
  6. 6 6. The Edwardian Artist's Studio2012-10-24 · 45mKevin McCloud meets Audrey and Jeff, who dream of living in one of west London's most exclusive areas. However, the way they can afford it is to go underground. Their plan is to tr
  7. 7 7. Isle of Skye: The Larch-Clad House2012-10-31 · 45mKevin McCloud meets artists Indi and Rebecca, who are planning to build a modern, larch-clad home on the Isle of Skye, with a second hand-crafted building alongside to use as their
  8. 8 8. London: The Joinery Workshop2012-11-07 · 45mHenning Stummel and his partner Alice Dawson attempt to convert an awkward,covered space, trapped between buildings in the crowded heart of north London into a contemporary family
  9. 9 9. The Tree House: Revisited2012-11-14 · 45mArchitectural designer Lincoln Miles and his wife found an uninspiring 70s bungalow on the Isle of Wight on a prime piece of land surrounded by unspoilt ancient woodland. Did their
  10. 10 10. The Disco Home: Revisited2012-11-21 · 45mIn 2010 Claire Farrow and Ian Hogarth embarked on a wild journey to build the ultimate fun family home, right in the heart of London, including a dance floor, DJ booth and sauna.
  11. 11 11. The Large Timber-Framed Barn: Revisited2012-11-28 · 45mFreddie Robins and Ben Coode-Adams left their cramped two bedroom London flat and took on the conversion of a huge Grade II listed timber framed barn in the Essex countryside. Seve
  12. 12 12. The Co-Op: 2nd Revisiting2012-12-05 · 45mOn the first series of `Grand Designs', a younger Kevin McCloud witnessed as a co-operative of ten families built their own homes on the edge of Brighton. Unpaid, they slogged away