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westcountrymodern.bsky.social
West Country Modernism
@westcountrymodern.bsky.social
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A journey around mid century modernist buildings in the West Country. By @magslhalliday.bsky.social

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Hinkley Point B, with A in the background (Image: EDF energy) The last uranium rods were removed from Hinkley Point B this week. The reactors were turned off three years ago, and the building is now being decommissioned. Mostly, when we talk about buildings being stripped out and demolished, the process is fairly quick. Even if asbestos is found. Decommissioning Hinckley Point B will take 95 years. There are three nuclear power stations on Hinkley Point, a headland on the North Somerset coast. Hinkley Point A and B are both in the process of decommissioning. Hinkley Point C is under construction. Norman Branson (1910 to 1993) designed several mid-century theatres, including Questors (1964) in Ealing and Rugby School Theatre (1974). There were plans for a £12million upgrade of the building, with a 2018 competition that appointed MICA as the architects. That was put on hold in 2019, ahead of the new unitary Somerset Council taking ownership of the building. The Brewhouse Theatre in 1977 (Image courtesy Taunton Theatre Association Ltd) I've been saving this nostalgia article until the time of year when temporary ice rinks pop up all over the country. Westover Garage and Ice Rink was built in the autumn of 1930 to the designs of Seal and Hardy. As the Echo wryly notes "Building a massive, refrigerated sheet of ice atop an immense motor garage on a busy thoroughfare was a significant undertaking." The resultant design was a joy, and part of Seal and Hardy's impact on Bournemouth in the interwar years. Get your skates on (Image cc Alwyn Ladell on flickr)
December 4, 2025 at 4:57 PM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
This give a sense of the precinct leading to it.
One side of a shopping precinct. The ground floor has an arcade of shops set behind cast concrete arches. Above that are flats with a ribbon of windows. One flat is higher, sitting on the third storey with a balcony.
November 29, 2025 at 3:42 PM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
Thank you for suggesting!
November 28, 2025 at 12:56 PM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
See? TARDIS. There are some 1973 photos of it as a library in the deep dive (just £3/month to subscribe for full access).

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Colour photo of an octagonal interior space. The open plan space has been filled with mismatched vintage furniture. But the real focus is of the wood-lined ceiling and the octagonal concrete ring that holds it in place. Above the ring is an equally octagonal lantern that is letting in light. Suspended below the lantern are scores of orange lampshades with fringing.
November 28, 2025 at 10:14 AM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
"The existing passenger lift is a notable highlight, as the planning permission does not allow for such an addition."

You are not going to get retroactive planning permission for that, or for the underground pool.
November 27, 2025 at 10:50 PM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
Take an ogle at her riah, though! Well naff.
November 27, 2025 at 3:41 PM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
One for @seasideferry.bsky.social, @seasidenetwork.bsky.social and @artdecosocuk.bsky.social as well as @municipaldreams.bsky.social I think!
November 27, 2025 at 10:16 AM
westcountrymodern.bsky.social
And we’re done. Nailsea and then the archives in Taunton.
The 1930s Hi Point building next to Taunton station. It’s three storeys but the ground floor is hidden by a fence. It’s moderne, with a large curved corner facing the road and a stepped back corner containing the stairs. The sole decorative detail - a horizontal double line emerging from a diamond and running across the building - is picked out in dark blue. The squarish windows glow gold with the sunset.
November 20, 2025 at 5:27 PM