The Story of Solent City

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Summary

Owen Hatherley investigates a rejected plan devised in the mid-1960s at the height of the post-war modernisation to join Southampton and Portsmouth with a vast, Los-Angeles style grid. Owen meets architects, planners and historians to tell the story of one of the boldest visions in the history of British urban design, discovering that some of its most important ideas might still be needed more than ever in 2025

Review

Anna Jones

Another exemplary documentary in the Illuminated strand, which sheds light on previously hidden worlds.

The writer Owen Hatherley returns to his home town of Southampton and examines one of the boldest pieces of urban planning that never happened — a 1960s idea to join Portsmouth to Southampton via an LA-style linear grid. This new idea for a super-sized settlement was thrilling, but why did the vision never see the light of day, and what can today’s planners learn from this epic failure?

The Story of Solent City

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