The Modern House Podcast

Today I’m talking to the wonderful Sumayya Vally, founder of the architecture and research practice Counterspace. When in 2020 Sumayya designed the Serpentine pavilion, she joined the ranks of luminaries including Zaha Hadid, Peter Zumthor and Frank Gehry. In 2021, Time Magazine named her one of the ‘100 Leaders of the Future’ and, more recently, she was artistic director of the inaugural Islamic Arts Biennale in Saudi Arabia.What really shines through in this conversation is Sumayya’s interest in the notion of home as it relates to place. She was born in an Indian township in Pretoria, just after Nelson Mandela was released from prison, and she cites the city of Johannesburg as her biggest inspiration. When she arrived in London, she became interested in the gathering spaces where settlers from other countries and communities have established themselves: churches, synagogues, marketplaces, female community centres, black-music venues and so on. ‘Home is not a physical place,’ she says. ‘It’s a sensibility and a feeling.’The name ‘Sumayya’ means ‘to rise to the occasion’, and she tells me how she’s an outlier in her family and how her parents made sacrifices to provide her with an education. Very occasionally in life, you meet someone who has an inner light that seems to shine more brightly than other people’s. For me, Sumayya has that. She’s incredibly composed, articulate and wise beyond her years and I’m full of admiration for the work she’s doing to bring disparate cultures together.This episode was recorded in person in London.For more:Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episode.Check out Counterspace.Production: Hannah PhillipsEditing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: Father

At the time of recording, Tim was knee-deep in building works at home, so I polished up my Chelsea boots for a visit to his London studio. As always, I asked him to describe his life story through the lens of the homes he’s lived in over the years. It was particularly interesting to find out more about his current home, which he bought after seeing it on our website and falling instantly in love. It’s a mid-century masterpiece set in splendid isolation near Rye, in East Sussex.  A celebration of craftsmanship comes through in everything that Tim is about. His father was a textile manufacturer, and he’s inherited a fascination with how things are made and the excitement of seeing something take shape on the factory floor. He tells me about his background in advertising, when he was given the most thrilling brief of all time: ‘Make Adidas cool again’. Having been given the keys to one of the world’s most established brands, he was inspired to start his eponymous footwear company and ultimately take over Grenson.Tim is a lovely guy – very humble and grounded – and I really enjoyed getting to know him through the course of this conversation.This episode was recorded in person at the Grenson Studio in Chelsea.For more:Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episode.Check out Grenson.Production: Hannah PhillipsEditing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: FatherThis episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

I first became aware of Jeremy’s food when he was head chef of Terence Conran’s Blueprint Café, which was above the old Design Museum in Shad Thames. Nowadays, of course, he’s in charge of the kitchen at the revered Quo Vadis in Soho.No one seems to have a bad word to say about Jeremy, and Jay Rayner describes him as ‘one of those rare phenomena in the London food world: a chap everyone agrees is a good thing.His cookbook is simply called Cooking, which sums up his warm-hearted and simple approach to food. I was fascinated to find out more about Jeremy’s life via the homes he’s lived in, from the modern house his parents built, which was shaped like a wedge of cheese, to the flat in a converted factory where we recorded this episode.It turns out that his approach to interiors is as artful as his presentation of food – as if each element has been dolloped off a spoon and landed in exactly the right place.This episode was recorded at Jeremy Lee’s east London home.For more: Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episodeWatch Homing In, the film series. Check out Jeremy’s cookbook, CookingProduction: Hannah PhillipsEditing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: Father

There’s barely an oilcloth, mug or ironing board cover that hasn’t been embellished with a nostalgic floral print from Cath Kidston. Because of the brand’s ubiquity, it’s easy to forget quite how influential it was when it appeared in the 1990s.What I love about Cath is that she’s living proof you can be a wildly successful entrepreneur whilst also being a kind, gentle soul. Although her name’s still above the door, she hasn’t been involved with the Cath Kidston business for many years, so I was intrigued to find out what that feels like. She’s now set up a bodycare brand called C. Atherley, which makes all of its products using scented geraniums. Despite her love of flowers, life hasn’t always been a bed of David Austin roses for Cath and she talks very honestly about the personal grief she’s suffered through her life. She has a great eye for interiors and we had this conversation at her kitchen table in London, with a surprisingly modern backdrop of Danish wood flooring and an Ellsworth Kelly artwork. Cath was very generous with her time and emotions and I’m really happy with how this episode has turned out. I hope you enjoy it.This episode was recorded in person at Cath Kidston’s West London home.For more: Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episodeCheck out Cath Kidston’s latest venture, C.AtherleyProduction: Hannah PhillipsEditing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: FatherThis episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

Today I’m chatting to the swashbuckling artist and restaurateur Jonny Gent. We recorded this episode during a busy lunch service at Sessions Arts Club, Jonny’s inspirational restaurant in Clerkenwell. It’s fair to say that he’d emboldened himself with a few martinis beforehand and what ensued was a conversation that very much represents the man himself: unstructured, poetic and generous. Jonny’s a brilliant painter, and his artworks range from the sexualised and salacious to tenderly painted still-lifes that are a tribute to his late mother. After getting himself through art school, he met a casting director who wrote him a cheque for every painting he’d made. What followed was a journey that took him to more than 20 countries around the world, establishing art studios in everything from a cabin in Scotland to a tobacco factory in France. Now approaching his late 40s, he’s finally starting to put down some roots. As well as having a permanent home in London, Jonny spends a lot of time in the Scottish Highlands, where he’s opened a retreat for creatives called Boath House. Like Sessions Arts Club, it explores the confluence of art, food and music.  Jonny says of his childhood, “I felt totally alone in what I found beautiful.” He begins by telling me about the Slow & Easy, the pub he grew up in, and the lasting impact of 500 strangers coming into your home every day. I hope you enjoy it!This episode was recorded in person at Sessions Arts Club, London.For more: Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episodeCheck out Sessions Arts Club and Boath HouseTake a look at Jonny Gent’s latest workProduction and editing: Hannah PhillipsEditing and mixing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: Father

Akram’s rich career includes performing at the opening ceremony of the London Olympics, collaborating with artists Anish Kapoor and Antony Gormley, and choreographing tours and videos for the likes of Kylie Minogue and Florence + the Machine. He was awarded an MBE for services to dance in 2005. He kindly invited us to his home last summer and we recorded this conversation in a shady spot in the garden. Akram is of Bangladeshi descent and he grew up above his parents’ restaurant in south-west London. He was bullied at school and harassed by the National Front outside of it, so he’s always had a conflicted view of his community. As a child, he was introverted to the point of being mute, and movement quickly became his primary form of expression. He tells me how he danced so enthusiastically at home that the lights in the restaurant below would start shaking, putting the customers off their food. The word ‘home’ has come to mean many things for Akram: it’s the small studio in the garden where he practises dance for four hours every morning, it’s the stage on which he performs, and it’s also his own body. As is the case for so many true artists, there’s a lot of conflicting emotion inside him. He talks particularly poignantly about his relationship with his late father, who always struggled to demonstrate his love. Akram’s story has really stayed with me. Being able to talk to people on this podcast is a great privilege, and conversations like this one really remind me of that.For more: Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episodeCheck out the latest from the Akram Khan CompanyProduction: Hannah PhillipsEditing and mixing: Oscar CrawfordGraphic Design: Tom YoungMusic: FatherThis episode was sponsored by Vitsoe