Terry Hill explores the career of Frederick Gibberd who designed, among many others, the St Albans Arena and Liverpool Catholic Cathedral

Was Frederick Gibberd (called F G in the office) a conservative pragmatic architect or an innovative visionary? He was certainly not traditional, and neither was he timid. The St Albans Arena (originally the City Hall) and Liverpool Catholic Cathedral were on Frederick’s drawing board at the same time.

Sir Michael Hopkins (inter alia 2026 Olympics Velodrome and who first worked for F G) designed and lived in a house next to his, said: “He would take a brief for a new commission home on a Friday night and come back on Monday with a dozen or more sheets of detail paper drawn in pencil with a T-square”.

Over his over 40-year career he worked through modernism and post modernism, frequently at the same time. Were his ambitions for Harlow New Town a social experiment or was he a driven post-war rebuilder crucially answering the call from blitzed London? I’ve worked in the idealistic world of new towns, and rarely have I come across the roles of town planner and architect combined so successfully.

We will work through Frederick’s works and try to follow him through modernism, his tiring of it, to a softer and more aesthetic approach. Hopkins again: “Style didn’t enter into it”.

Terry Hill recently joined the Arch & Arch but back in 1970 he dug with them before records began whilst working under City Engineer A. S. Moody. Previously he had worked for a New Town and a construction company. He was with Consultant Arup for about 40 years becoming Group Chair for 10 years, and also spent 10 years delivering, with others, HS1. Surprisingly he has had nothing to do with HS2. After retiring he served on several Boards including that of the Elizabeth Line. He reckons good design needn’t cost the earth.

This lecture will be available in person only at Dagnall Street Baptist Church. Please click on the button above right to register. You will then receive confirmation of your registration by email return. Registration closes at 3.30pm on Tuesday 20 October.

If you have any questions, please email Imogen de la Bere via lectures.sahaas@gmail.com

Photo above: Liverpool Catholic Cathedral by Terry Hill

Description supplied by the event organiser.