With a plot of land in Sussex overlooking the South Downs, newly-weds Jane and Willem wanted a house that would be atmospheric and open to the countryside. Inspired by memories of America, Jane planned a New England-style gabled house with large windows to make the most of the views.

Before she met and married Willem, she had already decided to buy a 'kit house' - a timber-frame building that is designed and manufactured off-site, then shipped in pieces to the client to be erected. This is a popular form of house building in the United States and the techniques used are highly developed - a far cry from Britain's famous post-war prefabs.

Grand Designs Season 2 Episodes...

• s02e01 - Farnham: The Regency Villa
• s02e02 - Sussex: The New England House
• s02e03 - Huddersfield: The Wool Mill
• s02e04 - Wales: The Isolated Cottage
• s02e05 - The Cruciform House, Berkshire
• s02e06 - Birmingham: The Community Self-Build
• s02e07 - London: The Jewel Box
• s02e08 - Devon: The Derelict Barns
• s02e09 - Revisited - Birmingham: The Community Self-Build
• s02e10 - Revisited - Wales: The Isolated Cottage
• s02e11 - Revisited - Devon: The Derelict Barns
• s02e12 - Revisited - Lambourn: The Cruciform House
• s02e13 - The Co-Op: Revisited
• s02e14 - The Isolated Cottage: Revisited
• s02e15 - The Dilapidated Georgian House: Revisited
• s02e16 - The Water Tower: Revisited
• s02e17 - The Derelict Barns: Revisited

Grand Designs Show Summary

Grand Designs is a Channel 4 TV series covering unusual architectural house-building projects, presented by Kevin McCloud.

The properties featured in the series vary wildly from homes underground to converted water towers, with the only common factor being that they're all rather unusual or extravagant in some way.