This was one of our informal quarterly meetings where our members showed off their latest Meccano creations.
At around 2:00pm we had a short committee meeting, followed by the Model Tour in which members were invited to give a short talk about their models — in particular their entries for the Secretary’s Challenge!
The Architectural Carbuncles Secretary’s Challenge
This Challenge was one from Brian Leach, and it was to build a model of an architectural carbuncle.
In 1984, Price Charles made a speech where he criticised modern buildings. Some of the proposals were altered or scrapped because of his intervention. In his list were the National Gallery Extension; Canary Wharf; Birmingham Central Library, Birmingham Convention Centre and the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh.
All our members had to do is make a model of any building that they considered to be particularly unattractive. They didn’t have to restrict themselves to Prince Charles’s list — there are plenty of modern buildings that could be contenders!