2017 Carbuncle Cup
On 6th September 2017, Building Design awarded the dubious honour of the Carbuncle Cup for 2017 to London’s Nova Victoria.
The Carbuncle Cup is an annual 'prize' awarded to the ugliest UK building completed in the last 12 months. A shortlist is compiled from public nominations, and the winner decided by a panel of critics.
Nova Victoria’s victory makes it the sixth consecutive year that London has received the award. It was designed by PLP Architecture.
The development is a bright red £380 million office and residential complex, occupying an entire block opposite the redeveloped Victoria Station. With a pointed peak that reaches 18 storeys-high, the building incorporates a sheer face of red glass criss-crossed with aluminium bracing. Around the side of the 'red wedge' runs a screen of aluminium fins, cut with rippled profiles. At ground level, these aluminium fins form a series of serrated openings.
The project was granted approval in 2009 and was the biggest consent Westminster Council had ever awarded, although the concept was drastically scaled back from its original high-rise intentions.
Awarding the prize, the judges described it as 'one of the worst office developments central London has ever seen', and one that 'sets a new benchmark for dystopian dysfunction'.
The other shortlisted projects that were beaten by Nova Victoria were as follows:
Preston Railway Station Butler Street Entrance, Preston, by AHR
[Photograph © Paul Melling.]
Park Plaza London Waterloo, London, by ESA Architecture
[Photograph © Alex Upton.]
Greetham Street Student Halls, Portsmouth, by Cooley Architects
8 Somers Road, Malvern, by Vivid Architects
Circus West, Battersea Power Station, London, by Simpson Haugh
[Images courtesy of Building Design.]
[edit] Find out more
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
AI-Driven automation; reducing time, enhancing compliance
Sustainability; not just compliance but rethinking design, material selection, and the supply chains to support them.
Climate Resilience and Adaptation In the Built Environment
New CIOB Technical Information Sheet by Colin Booth, Professor of Smart and Sustainable Infrastructure.
Turning Enquiries into Profitable Construction Projects
Founder of Develop Coaching and author of Building Your Future; Greg Wilkes shares his insights.
IHBC Signpost: Poetry from concrete
Scotland’s fascinating historic concrete and brutalist architecture with the Engine Shed.
Demonstrating that apprenticeships work for business, people and Scotland’s economy.
Scottish parents prioritise construction and apprenticeships
CIOB data released for Scottish Apprenticeship Week shows construction as top potential career path.
From a Green to a White Paper and the proposal of a General Safety Requirement for construction products.
Creativity, conservation and craft at Barley Studio. Book review.
The challenge as PFI agreements come to an end
How construction deals with inherited assets built under long-term contracts.
Skills plan for engineering and building services
Comprehensive industry report highlights persistent skills challenges across the sector.
Choosing the right design team for a D&B Contract
An architect explains the nature and needs of working within this common procurement route.
Statement from the Interim Chief Construction Advisor
Thouria Istephan; Architect and inquiry panel member outlines ongoing work, priorities and next steps.
The 2025 draft NPPF in brief with indicative responses
Local verses National and suitable verses sustainable: Consultation open for just over one week.
Increased vigilance on VAT Domestic Reverse Charge
HMRC bearing down with increasing force on construction consultant says.
Call for greater recognition of professional standards
Chartered bodies representing more than 1.5 million individuals have written to the UK Government.
Cutting carbon, cost and risk in estate management
Lessons from Cardiff Met’s “Halve the Half” initiative.
Inspiring the next generation to fulfil an electrified future
Technical Manager at ECA on the importance of engagement between industry and education.