Grand Designs Australia Episode Rating Graph

Set in historic Homewood House in Surrey, England, Grand Designs Australia host Peter Maddison and Grand Designs host Kevin McCloud sit down with a cup of tea and an old fashioned slide slow to reminisce about the design features of each of the ten homes, selected from the past six seasons. The design gurus talk cladding, tiles and form, and with whiskey in hand, engage in some gentle banter over each other’s take on the architecture of their favourite builds. While the special looks over the past, it also serves as a teaser for the upcoming seventh season.

Catherine and Mick purchase 50 acres in the rolling hills of South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula and begin building a remarkable structure that looks more like a corrugated iron shed than a house.

After buying a block of land in Clarence, Dennis and Karen try to build a house that can withstand bushfires out of seven shipping containers.

Anita and Kris Martincic dreamt of living in the city, so when a 100 year old derelict building came on the market, they jumped at the chance.

Fiona and Sal attempt to find a middle ground with their build, with Sal deciding the location and Fiona choosing the design.

Bel and John are building an underground house on 25 acres at Whittlesea, Victoria. An area known for bushfires, Bel and John want to ensure their property is fire proof.

Marc and Felicity have dreams of building a non-toxic, passive home and after years of work, the unthinkable happens – a fire sweeps through their beloved home just as they are about to move in. Will their dreams be shattered forever?

Lynne and Paul have found a beautiful stretch of coastal wilderness with panoramic views over the Tasman Sea. With plans to build a huge modern home, Paul will project manage while living on site.

Electrician Mick takes on the challenge of a lifetime when he and artist wife Belynda decide to build their dream modernist home in the bucolic Dooralong Valley, on the NSW Central Coast.

February 2009. Chris Clarke had just spent two years building his minimalist timber and steel dream home at Callignee in Gippsland when, less than a week after completion, it was burnt to the ground in the devastating Black Saturday bushfires. With nothing remaining but a concrete slab and a burnt out shell Chris was left shattered and numb. After recovering from the initial grief he was determined to re-build and re-use every last salvageable element of the original house. What he creates in the year or so following is simply remarkable. By adding sturdy recycled elements with the latest fire resistant materials, Chris sets out to produce a tough, resilient version of the original home (now dubbed Callignee One). Wearing its embattled past as a badge of honour, will Callignee Two not only face up to the Aussie bush?

Drew Muirhead is a self employed entrepreneur and man about town. He’s building a Balinese resort style mansion in leafy Cottage Point. Not one to do things by halves, Drew’s mansion will have Balinese Pavilions, an infinity pool, its own nightclub, five bedrooms, four bathrooms and a steam room. It all faces a private beach with boatshed and speedboat. The biggest battle for Drew, who is project managing the build – is the steep sloping block and access.

Brendan and Penelope dream of a multi-tiered, multi-million dollar home, complete with infinity pool on the side of a cliff in Bondi. But when they constantly change plans, will it ever be finished?

After a fire destroyed the much-loved homestead on Alistair and Belinda's dairy farm, they embark on a bold new project to create a comfortable home that looks like a dairy shed, complete with silos for bedrooms.

The brief to their architect was simple. A home that not only makes the very best of its location, but is truly unique. In short, as different as possible from the traditional ranch style and Queenslander neighbours.

Hoteliers Richard and Denise have knocked down the family home in the Adelaide Hills and are re-building an even bigger version, despite the fact their kids are grown. This modern mansion will have all the bells and whistles, amid resort like luxury on 3 tiered acres overlooking Adelaide. But is this unpretentious, likeable couple creating a home or a hotel for themselves? Money may be no object but have they taken on too much?

Alice is a long term fan of the small house movement and on a sloping site facing the Southern Ocean. She's creating a petite 40 square metre pod, offering all she needs and nothing more.

Building a big house in inner-city Melbourne is a tricky business. But architect Annalise and project manager Kim have a plan to turn their 1850s terrace into a multi-storied modern home with a triple car-stacker.

An experimental three storey house made entirely from 31 new shipping containers.

After 30 years as a civil engineer, Joe Cato sells his building business to spend more time with his kids and build a new house. This house will be completed entirely by rammed earth construction.

Owner/Architect Adrian is passionate about sustainable building. He has grand plans for turning his Vinegar Factory inside out by creating a four storey eco-friendly house complete with a series of walled rainforest.

In the bush ranger territory of the Strathbogie Ranges, Eddie and Dot dream of a home with a magnificent 360 degree view. Can they work around the huge granite boulders to achieve their dream?

Ian McDonald and Rob Wilhelm are not building an understated new home. Theirs is a Grand Design in its most literal sense. A glass box with a roof like floating wings overlooking Port Phillip Bay on the Bellarine Peninsula – seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms, cinema, games room, glass lift, glass panelled pool, rooftop garden – all the bells and whistles, all the boy’s toys. With a construction budget of $1.8 million, the question is will they burst the budget banks and by how much?

Chris and wife Belinda bought the small ‘car park’ of land next door to their existing house, just 3.9 metres wide: literally a tiny gap in a long row of heritage listed cottages in Sydney’s inner west Forest Lodge. Their plan is to squeeze every centimeter of land into a uniquely sustainable house.

Daniel Leipnik and Andrew Preston have long cherished the dream of a laid-back, barefoot life in the tropics. And they have found the ideal location at Trinity Beach near Cairns in Far North Queensland. Their ambitious new home will grace a hillside block bordering a World Heritage rainforest and overlooking the Coral Sea. After years planning this grand sea-change, they are ready at last to manage its construction. Their vision is for a classic pavilion-style pole home, nestled in the tree tops. But project managing is tough enough if you’re on site… and they’re attempting the job from 4,000 kilometres away in Melbourne, plus this is a first time experience for them both. While they believe they’ve left no stone unturned designing their South Pacific inspired hideaway, they can’t escape the challenges of the location. A precarious driveway, tropical downpours and expensive local trades are all threatening to send their budget and schedule spiralling out of control. Between pressing work commitments and the tyranny of distance, these idealists still believe they can pull off the house of their dreams. The question is, can they?

Like many people, Dean and Sherril Lamb yearn for a simpler existence, for them and their three children. But unlike most people, they’re actually going to try to make it happen. They’ve sold their successful fruit shop and home in Warragul and bought 40 acres in Pipers Creek in country Victoria; all in the pursuit of total self sufficiency.

Seasoned renovators Mark and Karen are taking on the challenge of converting a derelict 1920's electricity substation into a cutting edge home - while preserving its history and integrity.

Trevor and Jeanette are looking to build a very special home close to nature in which Trevor can move about easily in his wheelchair. When a 15 acre block with river frontage comes on the market, they pounce.

Self confessed hippies Cole and Jane Bradshaw bought a thin sliver of land on an exceptionally steep site only a landscaper could love, in the hilly suburb of Dynnyrne in Hobart... a place they chose as much for the tight knit community it sits in, as for the location itself.

Tyrone & Hailey follow the advice of a feng shui expert or 'energy ecologist' throughout construction of their new house. An owner-built labour of love, their passive solar building has a curved living roof planted with native grasses.

Inland from Noosa in a lush tropical landscape sits Nick and Nicole's sail house. They have a daring design which they hope will look like a yacht moored on dry land and provide them with a true adventure in paradise.

Over the years, Nick and Anna McKimm have almost made a hobby of renovating, selling and moving on. But with three young children, they’re ready to lay down permanent roots and build their dream home. A sleek, modernist, 60’s inspired family residence on a large, half acre block in Melbourne’s bayside suburb, Brighton. Nick heads up a successful building company and knows a lot about quality period reproductions - particularly classical architectural styles - and Anna has a flair for beautiful fit-outs. But as they’re about to learn, mid-century building is very different to other architectural styles and comes with its own challenges.

Brett and Rees are the proud parents of three young boys and desperately need more space. They love their inner west community in Sydney's Annandale, so the plan is to build on the small empty allotment behind their apartment. The first sod has barely been turned when one of the heritage buildings on their boundary is in danger of collapsing. Exhausted by ongoing battles and a build that's months behind schedule - will Brett & Rees have enough grit and determination to see their project through to completion?

Julie and Patrick fast tracked the construction of their modern beachside home, thanks to a firm of pre-fab builders in Victoria. Peter re-visits them to learn how they have settled in.

If ever there was an ideal place for a Hamptons house outside the Hamptons, the Gold Coast hinterland would be it – wide open spaces, balmy sea-kissed air and a sense of prosperity. For Steve and Lisa Morley it’s the American dream or nothing for their 4,000 square metre block. They love everything about the Hamptons style, from the warm timbers, to the many windows, pavilion style design, parquetry flooring and classic, soft interior furnishings. Lisa has done her research, designing many elements herself and will stop at nothing to fulfill her dream.

David and Sarah are in love with Mt Tamborine, the place they were married 22 years ago. They're now about to build a long-awaited home-away-from-home there, on lush mountain acreage boasting a rainforest and creek.

Art and Troy are swapping out their life running a grand old Bendigo bed and breakfast for a bold new and dramatically modern enterprise.

Tani and Tim have plans to build a medieval 'earth castle' on their 60 acre property. Built into the sides of a man-made dam, there are plans for a drawbridge, turret, underground tunnels and even a moat.

Photographer Nigel is building his first house with wife Nina on a site steeped in bushland that will form his inspiration. He's designing the house around a large Eucalyptus tree that will be the focal point.

Ardent collectors Kerry and Judy have a passion for Sante-fe style, mud houses even though they live on a sloping bush block on Sydney’s north shore. Inspired by an unconventional builder who changes his mind (and their design) on a regular basis, they set out to create a home out of recycled timber and corrugated iron, rendered in clay dug up from the side of the road. It may be straight out of the American mid west but this hybrid home will have a distinctly Australian flavour and provide an earthy backdrop for their many artistic objects, artifacts and collectables.

After years working abroad, Sarah and English born husband Alistair Brodie-Fraser decided to relocate back to Sarah’s home town of Toowoomba in Queensland. This time the move will be permanent – close to Sarah’s extended family. But with Sarah’s father being German, her mother Scottish and Alistair’s connection with the UK, memories of Europe were bound to have some influence in the design of their new house.

Six years ago Louise and Steve bought two acres of a rambling English garden in the Adelaide hills. Using the local stone their dream home will be a rustic two storey stone farm house with a modern twist.

Nick and Kate take inspiration from their vineyard location for the first build. Their architect designed home in the shape of a leaf, with a spine stone wall running through the middle and comes with a singing studio.

A sculptor and his architect brother are building a contemporary home on the edge of an escarpment using handcrafted materials inspired by their adjacent historic sawmill studio.

Thirteen years ago Meredith and Matt Bayfield needed an escape from their busy lives as doctors in Sydney so they purchased a working sheep property at Ilford in the central table lands of NSW.

Barbara and Bill love modernist design so they've sought an architect designed 70s style home. Bill has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease so the home's curved roof line and glass entrance is designed for the future.

Architect Tim Hill has made his name designing small, radically shaped, timber houses. Now it's time for Tim's family to up-size to a new house that will be curvaceously shaped like a foot.

With his own machinery and help from family and friends, Mike plans to build a large spotted gum clad home, in an off grid, koala filled paradise. However, he faces the challenge of transporting the materials via barge.

Set on a small block overlooking the Southern Ocean, this three-pod home straddles a pair of four-meter high sand dunes on the protected Aldinga Scrub conservation area on the South Australian coast.

Tony and Tania want a million dollar house on a $400,000 budget. Working off handshake deals with the architect and builder, will their dream home be finished?

A couple who are building a fire proof, sustainable, non toxic house at Kinglake, an hour out of Melbourne.

GP Zewlan and her electrician husband Tom, want an architect designed home in a great location on shoestring budget. Working within a tenuous loan framework, what they create is inspiring.

Anglican Reverends Neil and Ruth have long harboured a desire to build their own home in the style of a Tudor farm house featuring timber boards and a church-like interior of hand-crafted exposed structural beams.

David and Jenny have a dream to live in a super-modern terrace house in a traditional suburb. But their daring plan to create a three-storey home really pushes stress levels and finances to the limit.

Phillip lives in a quirky cluster of buildings -a shed and a heritage listed windmill. With the help of his architect friend Greg, they will link the historic structures into a contemporary, cohesive whole.

Adventurous, outdoorsy types, Greg Kay and Trish Knight, live in the ideal spot to enjoy nature - right on the waterfront in Hobart’s exclusive Battery Point. The view is dazzling and the aspect fabulous so when the time comes to downsize, they don’t want to go far – and end up buying the block next door. The plan is to subdivide, sell the heritage cottage at the front of the block and build a new house at the back, facing the water. But councils have a way of altering even the best laid plans – and after several set backs and a re-think, Greg and Trish find themselves embarking on an epic upsizing adventure. The old cottage must be integrated into a massive new house with two distinct zones – historical cottage at the front, ultra modern glass, timber and exposed concrete extension at the back. But it’s not easy. Stubborn blue stone bedrock, steep, narrow, restricted access, and a rogue sewage line indicate trouble ahead. Add to that an architect given free reign, contracts done on a handshake, and Greg’s insistence on quality, and you have a schedule blow out with a budget spinning out of control. The big question is – can they afford to live there?

Jenny & Brett are replacing their loved Californian Bungalow with a sculptural, Japanese style all timber house with wrap-around pool. Pure dedication ensures this uniquely challenging build triumphs despite the challenges.

When it comes to his family home, IT engineer Damien wants it filled with every hi tech feature. Computer controlled blinds, a two storey spiral glass staircase, and a custom air powered laundry chute.

The single longest build in Grand Designs Australia's history. This 6 year build was all about getting their dream house absolutely perfect.

Perth couple Angelo and Kasi love the bulky concrete buildings from the 1950s. But when they see the plans for their new family home, there are a few surprises. Will they embrace the unique design?

An abiding love of all things 1950’s, especially American design, architecture and art has been a life-long pursuit for dedicated collectors Warwick Noble and Melanie Hughes. If it’s from the 50’s, they collect it, they wear it…… or they dance to it! They live in an old fibro house built in the 50’s by Mel’s grandfather. But its boxy design has become too tight for them and their two daughters Evie 7 and Lola aged 9, so they’ve made the decision to build from scratch, and fast track to 50’s modern.

Simon and Lauren want to convert a tiny 150-year-old church into their family home. This means honouring the history of the church while creating a modern house – will they succeed?

When Jason Bretell and Jennifer Pancari first set eyes on a dilapidated old bluestone cottage in the Melbourne bayside suburb of Williamstown, it was love at first sight. The 150-year-old derelict structure was left almost frozen in time with decaying tools, utensils, and other remnants amongst the ruins – bits and pieces Jason and Jen hope to salvage as they bring the cottage back to life.

Steve Minon has a fascination for things Japanese. He fell in love with the work of an iconic Japanese architect Yo Shimada, who he contacted to design a house for him.

Edd and Amanda lost everything when bushfires swept through Steels Creek. Determined to stay with the land they love, they're building a concrete bunker embedded in the landscape with one side facing the outside world.