Hugh Wallace: 'The bungalow is part of the Irish psyche'

Eve Kelliher looks at the homes that improved the affordable housing options available to rural dwellers in the 1970s

Fri, 26 Nov, 2021 - 12:00

Eve Kelliher

This year is the 50th anniversary of the publication of a book that changed the appearance of the Irish landscape dramatically.

First hitting the shelves in 1971, Jack Fitzsimons’s Bungalow Bliss featured 20 plans for those iconic single-storey residences.

In later years, Fitzsimons wrote, in a follow-up, Bungalow Bliss Bias, published posthumously: “For many thousands of people, Bungalow Bliss was a godsend. Others regard it as a curse.”

Because while some consider them bliss and others a blight, bungalows inarguably improved the affordable housing options available to rural dwellers in that decade.

The development of bungalows represents “people having a little bit of money” and moving out of the traditional homes they grew up in, according to architect Hugh Wallace.

The development of bungalows represents “people having a little bit of money”, according to architect Hugh Wallace.

Like them or loathe them, they are now as symbolic of “traditional” Irish architecture as the thatched cottage in The Quiet Man movie.

Fascinated since childhood by their role in Irish society, Hugh said: “Everyone feels thatched cottages are synonymous with Ireland but I think these days bungalows are synonymous with the Irish countryside and the Irish psyche.”

Bungalows first popped up on our landscape in the 1970s as a series of easy-to-follow design plans flooded the country and became a popular housing solution, allowing a new generation of families to build their own homes for the first time.

The simple structures became an integral part of Ireland’s architectural DNA and are now dotted around every inch of our countryside. Speaking to Irish Examiner Property & Home last year as he was about to embark on the upcoming RTÉ One television series My Bungalow Bliss, Hugh Wallace said: “Bungalows were about Ireland, as a society, growing up.”

As the series airs next week, we are about to rekindle our love affair with the bungalow in earnest.

But glossy modern makeovers are well overdue: Many bungalows have been untouched since they were first built, and could benefit from new designs and sustainable interventions to keep them fit for purpose.

Actor Angela Lansbury pictured with her son and daughter at their bungalow at Conna, Co Cork, in 1972.

In this four-part series, we will see four innovative architects paired with four first-time bungalow homeowners who are desperately seeking a way of improving their dark, damp and dated homes.

Under the eye of presenter Hugh, four celebrated architectural practices will redesign the bungalows into bespoke homes, suited to the way we want to live today. The series will showcase the transformative effect architecture can have on our lives and on our landscape.

Episode one takes place in Galway, where Niki and Davin have purchased a monster of a bungalow that is cold, dark and warren-like, having been extended multiple times over the decades. Davin and Niki love the minimalist aesthetic and want a bright, open-plan home with good air quality.

Their architects are Nicola and Grainne from Studio Red known for their exceptional eye for detail and their eco-friendly bespoke designs.