Holyrood parliament building, Batman!
September 20th, 2004Took a trip yesterday to the controversial (and incredibly expensive) Scottish Parliament building at Holyrood. It’s certainly, er, different.
Plenty of it I managed to like though, while they overdo the concrete in the reception lobby (which is also too gloomy for my liking), the debating chamber itself is wonderful, especially the trussing that keeps the roof up. And the public gallery is (even in these times of terrorists T-shirted toffs and condom-throwing blokes) very close to the MSPs and with no screens or barriers.
The whole theme of the building is based around sharp corners and gently curving edges, which by itself make it look very odd. It isn’t until you look at the building with Holyrood Park and Arthur’s Seat in the background, do you realise how the inorganic and alien look is actually quite complementary to the surrounding landscape (itself inorganic, and pretty alien to an English intruder like myself), if not any of the surrounding buildings.
Still can’t believe the damn thing cost ten times the original estimate though. The souvenir shop is suitably pricey, though you’d have to pretty optimistic to reckon they’ll claw all the money back with sweets and postcards.