Glasgow College of Building and Printing

The Herald has defended this prominent Glasgow tower block, currently a giant bill board in the city centre, from accusations that it is the “second ugliest building” in the UK.

Prof Alan Dunlop, architect of the Glasgow Radisson and award winning Hazelwood School, is quoted as saying it is one of the “finest and most elegant buildings built in the 1960s that Glasgow actually has.”

Yes, it has “brutalist elements” such as the roof top concrete structures, which are reminiscent of Le Corbusier (so too the piloti, the concrete legs) but he calls it “refined” and “with real elegance”.

It is actually one of a pair of striking buildings designed by Peter Williams for Wylie, Shanks & Partners.

Part of the problem of course is weathering and deterioration of the fabric, which is to be expected in a building from 1964.

The B-listed tower block is to be renovated as a space for expanding tech and digital businesses, but the partner podium building is to be demolished.