Homing

Henry Holland on Reinvention, Resilience and a Home in Two Halves

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 16:00:00 +0100

For fashion designer turned ceramicist Henry Holland, reinvention isn't about starting over – it's about evolving on your own terms.

Henry first made his name with the cult fashion label House of Holland, famous for cheeky slogans like 'Do Me Daily Christopher Bailey' and 'Let's Breed Bella Hadid'. But in recent years, he has pivoted to making homewares and contemporary ceramics, using the Japanese technique of nerikomi.

With his East London house currently being refurbished from top to bottom, Henry is living in a home of two halves. It’s the perfect metaphor for this transitional stage of his life.

His parents separated when he was young, and he split his time between the two households. One was ordered and structured, while the other was more creative. It’s clear that he lives his life today with the influence of both.

There’s the playful version of him that we’ve seen pictured at parties. But there’s also a deeply determined side that’s about proving people wrong, which partly stems from the bullying he experienced when he was young.

Henry is not afraid to reveal his sensitivities, opening up about everything from panic attacks and imposter syndrome to the disappointment he felt when his fashion brand closed down in 2020.

This is a conversation about reinvention, resilience and the tension between who we’ve been and who we’re becoming.

This episode was recorded inside Henry’s home in East London.

A full tour of the house is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

How to Detoxify Your Home with Dr. Jenny Goodman

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 16:00:00 +0000

We think of home as our ultimate refuge – a sanctuary from the noise and pollution of the outside world. But what if the space meant to protect us is actually the one we should be questioning most?

Dr. Jenny Goodman, a practitioner of ecological medicine, has spent years examining how modern life exposes us to toxins and sharing practical steps we can take to reduce exposure.

Jenny breaks down the "cocktail effect" of everyday cleaning products, the common mistakes we make with food storage and the reason she chooses a Wi-Fi-free domestic life.

This isn’t a conversation about getting everything right. No home is entirely free from toxicity, and it’s about personal choice. But Jenny teaches us the importance of paying closer attention to our surroundings – and making small, considered changes that may have a positive impact in the long term.

Please note: the views expressed in this episode are those of the guest and are not intended as medical advice.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Maria Balshaw on Creative Rebellion, Life After the Tate & The House as a Container

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Beyond the whirlwind of galleries and exhibitions, Tate Director Maria Balshaw's home holds the quieter, deeply personal moments of her life.

Growing up in Northampton, she longed to escape her characterless new-build house and nurtured a desire to be different. Her current home in Kent is a reflection of that creative rebellion, with medieval beams at its centre, classical sash windows on one side and Crittalls on the other.

Maria grows vegetables in her garden year-round, swims in the sea nearby, and measures time by what’s coming into flower – a way to be at one with nature and shed the stress of an urban working week.

Her mother spent her final months in this house, sitting on the terrace in the sun, watching buzzards circle the valley, convinced one of them was her late husband waiting for her.

At the end of March, Maria is stepping down from her position at the Tate after nine years, signing off with a major Tracey Emin exhibition. She knows exactly where she’ll be the following morning: in the garden, in her wellies, at the start of the growing season.

This is a conversation about movement and rootedness – and about what it means to build a home that can hold both.
This episode was recorded inside Maria’s home in Kent.

A full tour of the home and garden is available to our Patreon community.
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version
Instagram: @homingwithmatt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Alain de Botton: Is Your Home Making You Happy?

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Why are some people drawn to minimalist architecture while others prefer nostalgic rooms filled with antiques and personal artefacts?

Writer and philosopher Alain de Botton believes the answer might lie deeper than taste.

For many years, Alain has explored the emotional forces that shape our inner lives – from love and loss to status anxiety. Through his educational organisation, The School of Life, he has focused on wellbeing and self-understanding.

Much of this thinking connects directly to the built environment.

In his book The Architecture of Happiness, Alain argues that buildings are never neutral: they can steady us, unsettle us, and quietly influence who we become.

In this conversation, Alain reflects on his own relationship with domestic space – and how, in many ways, he has spent a lifetime trying to recreate the modernist calm of his childhood home in Switzerland.

Together, Matt and Alain explore beauty, belonging and control – and examine why so many of us turn to architecture in search of a kind of psychological skin.

This is a conversation that goes to the heart of what Homing is about: how we build safety, both in the spaces around us and within ourselves.

This episode was filmed at Alain’s house in North London.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

For exclusive walking tours – from Dan Pearson’s year-round outdoor kitchen to Polly Morgan’s taxidermy zebra – join us on Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Tom Stuart-Smith on Landscapes, Legacy & The Uplifting Power of Nature

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Landscape architect Tom Stuart-Smith has spent most of his life on the same plot of land, tending its gardens and letting the land shape him in return.

Tom has designed gardens at places like Chatsworth, Tate Britain and The Hepworth Wakefield. He’s won nine gold medals at the Chelsea Flower Show, and was awarded an OBE in 2023.

But long before any of that, he was a child roaming Serge Hill in Hertfordshire, the estate his grandfather bought decades ago. Tom spent his childhood climbing its trees and staging Shakespeare plays. And apart from a brief spell away, he’s lived just 200 yards from his childhood home for almost his entire life.

Tom’s wife, Sue Stuart-Smith, is a psychotherapist and author of the book The Well Gardened Mind. Together, they created the Serge Hill Project – a part of the estate where community groups, schoolchildren, young offenders and people recovering from illness can get hands-on with the soil and experience the uplifting power of nature.

This is a conversation about landscapes, legacy and what it really means to stay rooted in one place.

The episode was recorded at The Apple House, a modern pavilion on the estate designed by their son Ben.

A full tour of the building and its surroundings is available to our Patreon community.
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version
Instagram: @homingwithmatt
TikTok: @homing.with.matt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised tour of Tom’s estate is available to our Patreon community.
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Anxiety in the Body: Creating a Sanctuary at Home with Dr Alexandra Shaker

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Anxiety is something many of us carry quietly. It can shape everything, from how we move through the world to how we feel at home.

In this episode of Homing, Dr Alexandra Shaker explores how the home can become a sanctuary and how physical environments can either soothe or unsettle us.

Alexandra is a specialist in anxiety disorders with a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Her book The Narrowing combines her personal experiences of panic attacks with what she’s learned over years as a practitioner and researcher.

The conversation traces some of the root causes of anxiety and practical ways to live alongside it, from mindfulness and sleep hygiene to the importance of community and belonging. Matt and Alexandra discuss how spaces, lighting, sounds, and materials can trigger panic, and how the home can be adapted into a calming, grounding refuge.

This episode is about understanding anxiety in the body, the power of practical support, and how a home can centre us and keep us grounded through difficult times.

To hear more from Alexandra:
Her Substack Janus Gate features pressing questions, hesitations and preoccupations through the lenses of psychological research and contemporary culture. You’ll also receive her book reviews.

To hear more from us:
YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version
Instagram: @homingwithmatt
TikTok: @homing.with.matt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusicIdentity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline

For exclusive walking tours – from Dan Pearson’s year-round outdoor kitchen to Polly Morgan’s taxidermy zebra – join us on Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Elizabeth Day on Perfectionism, Positive Affirmations & Rebuilding Home After Loss

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Author and podcaster Elizabeth Day spent years chasing a vision of the ‘perfect’ home life, only to discover that reality can look very different.

She grew up in the Northern Irish countryside, in a home that was physically safe but shadowed by unrest in the wider community. Childhood fears of monsters under the bed were replaced by the reality of masked terrorists, which has made the concept of home as a place of safety so central to her life today.

In the high-pressure early years of her journalism career at The Evening Standard, Elizabeth sought to create peaceful, restorative spaces – first in her own apartments, and later in the relationships she invested in.

Her path has also been marked by profound challenges: the unexpected breakdown of her first marriage and a 12-year fertility journey that ultimately ended in disappointment. As a high achiever with a clear picture of her life goals, learning to navigate what she describes as “failure” has been far from straightforward.

She describes her life in more recent years as “a dismantling of that and a recovery of who I was at four.”

Her current home and her loving marriage to Justin are built upon the lessons she learned from these experiences. Elizabeth describes finding her home as a moment of fate, as if the universe delivered exactly what she needed.

This episode looks at how perfectionism can take us away from ourselves, and how love and self-compassion can help us feel at home again.

The episode was recorded in Elizabeth’s house in South London.

A full house tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

Elizabeth’s new novel, One of Us, is published by 4th Estate and available to purchase in hardback here. You can also preorder a copy of the paperback out (21 May) here.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised studio tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Wintering at Home: The Power of Rest & Ritual, with Katherine May

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 12 Feb 2026 16:00:00 +0000

In the first episode of a new strand of Homing, Katherine May frames the home as a place to slow down and take refuge from the overstimulating world beyond.

Katherine is known for her bestselling book Wintering, which explores the importance of rest and retreat during the fallow periods of life that we all experience.

The conversation delves into what happens when we allow ourselves to notice natural rhythms and cycles: the solstices, the shifting light, and the subtle signals that tell us when it’s time to slow down.

Katherine describes home as a sensory environment – almost as an extension of the body itself – and how the spaces we live in can either soothe the nervous system, or quietly overwhelm it.

The conversation turns to boredom and creativity – and why giving children unstructured time and space can be one of the most generous things we do for them.

Katherine helps us understand the home as a place where we can learn to restore ourselves, enabling us to go back out into the world with renewed strength.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

For exclusive walking tours – from Dan Pearson’s year-round outdoor kitchen to Polly Morgan’s taxidermy zebra – join us on Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Natasha Landers on Curating Black Art, East London & The Home as a Living Exhibition

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 16:00:00 +0000

For interior designer and art curator Natasha Landers, home is where the public and private worlds meet. Her Walthamstow house is a curated gallery, where Black art is not just displayed, but lives among her daily life.

Natasha grew up in a Hackney council house, sharing a bedroom with her brother in a home where space was tight, but imagination wasn’t.

From an early age, she found ways to express herself – decorating her bedroom and reworking her clothes.

She was the first in her family to go to university, leaving the noise of East London for the stillness of the Welsh valleys. The silence was unsettling. No traffic. No sirens. Just the realisation that home isn’t only about place – it’s about what your body recognises as safe.

Today, Natasha is a diversity consultant, working in boardrooms where she's often the only Black person in the room. Spaces where she’s learned to hold her ground – and gently challenge how others see the world.

Her home has become part of that work, and she opens it up as an exhibition space for Black artists.

She’s lived there for 26 years, shaping it slowly and conscientiously. A roll-top bath once sat in the living room for two years, waiting for the moment it could finally be installed.

It’s also a home that knows how to slow down.

After years of people-pleasing and burnout, Natasha has learned to honour rest – and to find pleasure in small, everyday rituals.

This is an episode about patience, knowing when to perform and when to stop, and how a home shaped over time can become a place where you’re finally allowed to just be.

The episode was recorded at Natasha’s home in Walthamstow.

A full tour of the house and art collection is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Dan Pearson on Landscape Design, Mindfulness & the Alchemy of Gardening

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 16:00:00 +0000

For Dan Pearson, working with the landscape isn’t simply his profession — it’s how he makes sense of the world.

In this emotional conversation, he opens up about self-image, mindfulness and the alchemy of gardening – something that can feel like magic, but is really about careful attention and a deep respect for the natural rhythms of life.

Dan fondly recalls his childhood home: a dilapidated house where wildlife knew no boundaries, with rat holes under doors and vegetation pressing up against the furniture.

Today, he lives in a modest stone farmhouse with small windows, nestled into the side of the valley, with a huge landscape that opens out in front. He and his partner cook and eat in their outdoor kitchen year-round, watching the weather roll in over Freezing Hill. At the bottom of the garden, there’s a pond for swimming or meditation. It’s the embodiment of the prospect-refuge theory.

This is an episode about humility, about living in sync with nature and understanding that as human beings, we're part of a wonderful ecosystem much larger than ourselves.

The episode was recorded at Dan’s home in Somerset.

A full tour of his garden and outbuildings is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

Dan also publishes Dig Delve, an online magazine about his Somerset garden, with photography and editorial by his partner Huw Morgan.

Homing listeners can use the discount code HOMING2026 for 15% off annual or quarterly subscriptions.

Website: www.digdelve.com

Instagram: @digdelve

Dan’s personal Instagram: @coyotewillow

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Matilda Goad on Balance, Joy and Playful Homeware Design

Matt Gibberd — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 16:00:00 +0000

For homewares designer Matilda Goad, balance isn’t just a design principle – it’s a way of living. Her home is a reflection of that: comfortable and familiar, but full of playful touches.

Growing up in a country cottage, boredom became a lesson in invention. With her grandfather an artist and her mother a fashion designer, Matilda was surrounded by creativity from an early age and developed a strong drive to prove herself.

That ambition runs through everything she does. From designing her iconic scallop-edged lampshade to opening a new hardware store off the Pimlico Road, Matilda has a talent for taking the functional and adding a playful twist.

Her home in London is an extension of her visual identity and the backdrop to some of life’s most significant moments. Both of her children were born at home – one in the sitting room, the other in the bedroom. For Matilda, home is psychological safety: a place that can hold everything.

We talk about sensitivity to environments, using anxiety as fuel, and the discipline required to sustain creative drive. She shares practical rituals to reset, from breathwork exercises to lighting techniques, and the realities of building a business slowly and organically.

This episode is about purpose, momentum and how our homes mirror the lives we’re building.

– Matt

An extended version of the tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Skye McAlpine on Hosting, Christmas & the Myth of Perfection at Home

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 16:00:00 +0000

For a special Christmas episode of Homing, I was invited into the home of cookery writer and ultimate host, Skye McAlpine.

Skye is like a modern-day “Mother Christmas”. She was raised between London and Venice by parents who were great bon viveurs, and her childhood home was an open house, filled with guests, conversation and celebration. It’s there that she absorbed the idea that a home is meant for sharing – a philosophy she has carried into both her life and her work.

If you follow Skye online, you’ll see that her kitchen is at the heart of everything she does; a space to cook and gather those she loves around one long table. For Skye, hosting is an expression of love, and choosing a favourite event is, in her words, “like choosing a favourite child”.

The glamorous version of her life is only one side of the story. Skye also shows me the unseen, everyday moments of life at home.

During our tour, she laughs about the dust that gathers on every surface, which makes her cough. We talk about insomnia, doomscrolling, introversion, and the importance of not letting the pressure to appear perfect stop you from putting yourself out there.

This is an episode about place, belonging, childhood, and what it really means to make people feel at home.

So before your Christmas dinners, I hope you give this episode a listen and absorb Skye’s wisdom for creating a table full of love.

This episode was filmed in person at Skye’s London Victorian townhouse.

– Matt

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic

Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office

Produced by @podshoponline

The full visualised home tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Max Rollitt on Interior Decorating, Sentimentality & the Home as Autobiography

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 16:00:00 +0000

Max Rollitt is a highly respected interior decorator and antiques dealer. Extraordinary pieces pass through his hands every day, yet most of the objects he chooses to live with at home have little monetary value. Instead, they are tokens of respect and love.

The conversation begins with Max’s childhood in Winchester, where he struggled at school because he processed information in images – something we’d now recognise as dyslexia. It’s this visual approach that is the foundation for a ‘Max Rollitt’ interior: decorating a home the way an artist composes a painting.

Nowhere is that sensibility clearer than in his family farmhouse in the South Downs. Every piece of furniture and object has a story to tell: artworks from his sons, photographs of his wife, and handmade gifts from his mentors. During our private home tour, some of these objects even moved Max to tears.

We also talk about how to create a nurturing environment for creative children, the grounding effect of rural life and finding personal fulfilment through spirituality.

This episode is about how the objects we surround ourselves with are more than aesthetic items – they are containers for people and experiences.

This episode was recorded in person at Max’s farmhouse in the South Downs.

– Matt

An extended version of the tour is available to our Patreon community.

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

To hear more from us:

YouTube:
Subscribe to our channel, Homing with Matt, to watch the video version
Instagram: @homingwithmatt
TikTok: @homing.with.matt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Polly Morgan on Taxidermy, Family & Letting Things Go

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 13 Nov 2025 16:00:00 +0000

Much like her taxidermy-based sculptures, Polly Morgan is an artist who delights in looking beneath the surface.

Her home in Camberwell is deliberately minimalist - a space viewers may recognise from Netflix’s Baby Reindeer. As she prepares to move out after 13 years, with most of her possessions already shipped off to the countryside, she reflects on the highs and lows of her time there.

Growing up in the Cotswolds, Polly’s childhood was characterised by watching animals die and by seeing her father dissect bodies to understand anatomy. Those early experiences formed her way of seeing, not as something morbid, but as a curiosity about life and its endings.

Entirely self-taught, Polly has always worked slightly outside of artistic convention. She speaks about wanting to notice what most people overlook, to find the parts of things that are usually hidden.

It’s with this same outlook that she talks about the loss of her sister and mother, and the decision to say goodbye to her city life as she prepares to return to the countryside.

This is a conversation about artistic process, growing older, family, and learning what to hold on to and what to let go of.

This episode was recorded in person at Polly’s home in Camberwell.

For more content and exclusive walking tours:
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Chris Packham on Neurodiversity, Safe Spaces & Finding Solace in Nature

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 17:17:52 +0000

Chris Packham has always fascinated me. As a broadcaster, naturalist, and conservationist, he’s helped millions connect with wildlife and the natural world through shows like BBC’s Springwatch – but sitting down with him in his home, I realised how much of his story is about creating refuge, both at home and within himself.

In this deeply personal conversation, Chris speaks candidly about his childhood in Southampton, being diagnosed with autism in his forties, and how he has designed a home that helps him manage sensory sensitivities – ironically filled with furniture and artwork that is deliberately uncomfortable.

He reflects on solitude versus loneliness and how nature provides safety, structure and healing when the human world feels overwhelming.

It’s a conversation about finding comfort in discomfort, about refuge and resilience, and, above all, about what it means to feel at home in the world.

It’s also one of the most memorable episodes I’ve ever recorded.

This episode was recorded in person at Chris' home in the New Forest.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel Homing with Matt, to watch the video version

Instagram: @homingwithmatt

TikTok: @homing.with.matt

Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

For more content and exclusive walking tours:

Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

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Homing With Matt Gibberd

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 16:14:24 +0000

The Homing podcast explores the importance of home in shaping who we are.

Join Matt Gibberd, author and co-founder of The Modern House, as he takes listeners inside the homes of inspiring guests to examine what really happens inside our walls – how they influence our emotions, creativity and sense of self.

Featuring leading voices from art, film, wellbeing and beyond, Homing is a thoughtful journey into remarkable homes and the minds that shape them.

Be prepared for tears, laughter, and everything in between.

"The Best Podcasts To Listen To" – Vogue

Homing is produced by Podshop, with music by Simeon Walker.

Homing is an independent podcast and operates as a separate venture from The Modern House Limited. While Matt Gibberd is a co-founder of The Modern House, all opinions expressed on Homing are solely those of the host and his guests.

To hear more from us:

YouTube: Subscribe to our channel Homing with Matt Gibberd, to watch the video version
Instagram: @homingwithmatt
TikTok: @homing.with.matt
Contact: Email us at hello@mattgibberd.com

For more content and exclusive walking tours:
Patreon: http://patreon.com/HomingWithMatt

Matt Gibberd’s book, A Modern Way to Live, is available here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/320176/a-modern-way-to-live-by-gibberd-matt/9780241480496

Music by @simeonwalkermusic
Identity & design by @lena.winkler.creative.office
Produced by @podshoponline

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Bethan Laura Wood: the multidisciplinary designer on the need to make and create

Matt Gibberd — Tue, 30 Sep 2025 14:55:32 +0100

Bethan designs everything from furniture to lighting and textiles, and some of her work is currently on display at the Design Museum in London.

She presents herself to the world like a human peacock. She dyes her hair different colours, wears layers of vivid clothing, and puts dots on her cheeks.

Her flat in east London isn’t exactly demure either. We recorded this podcast in the company of various hats and handbags, a jar of balloons in liquid, and a lamp shaped like a jellyfish.

In this conversation, we dig into the differences between collecting and hoarding. The objects Bethan lives with are like a cast of characters in a film. The way she arranges them isn’t just about what looks good together; she’s also thinking about the stories they tell.

Going back to her childhood, she tells me about dressing like “a 1950s cool dinner lady”, and how watching TV inspired her to apply for the Royal College of Art.

We talk about the impact of bullying, and how she’s been shaped by her dyslexia.

She’s a fascinating character, and I really enjoyed getting to know her better.

For more:

PLATFORM: Bethan Laura Wood

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Pick up a copy of Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Laconic Collective

Graphic Design: Ben Tucker

Music: Simeon Walker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Lakwena Maciver: the renowned artist on colour, creativity, criticism and connection

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 18 Sep 2025 09:56:21 +0100

Today's guest is the wonderful Lakwena Maciver.

Lakwena is an artist whose work has exploded out of the Instagram generation. She uses bright colours and patterns inspired by her African heritage and bold written slogans.

Given that her work is so positive and uplifting, I was really interested to find out that she's a natural pessimist with a very tough inner critic. So the words that appear in her art, which say things like 'Do Better' and 'Raise Your Hopes', are actually messages to herself.

She kindly invited us to her house in east London to record this episode, and I really enjoyed finding out more about her home life. She reveals that she didn't really fit in anywhere as a child, so she was one of the only Black kids at her school and at home, she was an introvert in a household of extroverts, but she found drawing, which she describes as a process of empowerment. The act of putting pencil to paper helped her make sense of everything she was experiencing.

We discussed a refurb she's done on her house, and how she's had to learn to compromise with her husband, especially when it comes to carpets. We talk about the importance of taking the time to reflect on your successes, why she'd secretly like to live in a hut in Uganda.

For more:

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Pick up a copy of Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Laconic Collective

Graphic Design: Ben Tucker

Music: Simeon Walker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Sir Christopher Le Brun: The leading painter on the homes that have shaped him

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 03 Apr 2025 06:00:00 +0100

Christopher was President of the Royal Academy for eight years and given a knighthood in 2021.

I first met him a few years ago, when The Modern House was selling his beautiful home in Camberwell. Shortly after that, he had a joint exhibition in Los Angeles with my wife, Faye Toogood, so I got to know him better during the week we were out there together.

This podcast gave me the chance to go a bit deeper, and I really enjoyed finding out more about his life.

Despite always finding himself in positions of authority, Christopher paints a picture of a naturally shy and introspective character.

He and his wife, Charlotte Verity, moved out to Somerset a couple of years ago, and we had a snoop around their studios before sitting down to record this podcast in their lovely Georgian farmhouse.

Christopher gives me a fascinating insight into what it's like to be a professional painter: from the importance of the space he's working in, to the rituals he goes through and what he's thinking about.

He tells me about what it's like to live with another artist – how they need to give each other space, and how they critique each other's work.

And we discuss the important houses in his life, notably the Victorian villa that he extended with the help of the architect Jamie Fobert.

I've got a huge amount of respect for Christopher, and I found this conversation so fascinating. I hope you enjoy it too.

For more:

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Pick up a copy of Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Laconic Collective

Graphic Design: Ben Tucker

Music: Simeon Walker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Dame Zandra Rhodes: the fashion legend on living a life in Technicolor

Matt Gibberd — Tue, 11 Mar 2025 12:16:00 +0000

Zandra's home is one of the most colourful, cluttered and downright bonkers living spaces I've ever been in.

We recorded this podcast just before Christmas, so there was an extra layer of sparkle on top of the kaleidoscope.

Zandra walked me through her incredible life story... from being born during an air raid in 1940, to being discovered by American Vogue's fashion editor Diana Vreeland... dressing people like Freddie Mercury, and having lunch with Salvador Dali and Andy Warhol.

We discussed why she dyes her hair pink and wears flamboyant clothes, and why she's never seen herself in the mirror without makeup on.

She told me about her colourful family history, including a dad she was embarrassed by, a mum who channelled all of her ambition into Zandra, and a grandmother who was murdered.

Zandra's in her mid-eighties now. A few years ago, she was diagnosed with cancer and given six months to live, so I wasn't sure quite what to expect.

But I found someone who's incredibly full of life, working as hard as ever, and optimistic about the future.

This episode was recorded in person at Zandra's home in London.

For more:

Pick up a copy of Zandra Rhodes' latest book, Iconic

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Pick up a copy of Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Laconic Collective

Graphic Design: Ben Tucker

Music: Simeon Walker

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Nigel Slater: the food writer opens the door to his fascinating home life

Matt Gibberd — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 06:00:42 +0000

Nigel is the first podcast guest ever to make me cry. I'm a big fan of his writing, and suspected he'd be a kindred spirit, but spending the day with him in his house was an overwhelming experience I wasn't prepared for.

He lives around the corner from where I grew up, in a pared-back way that feels very familiar. In this remarkably honest conversation, he outlines the essential role his home plays in keeping him on an even keel.

We discuss what it's like to suffer from panic attacks, and how they're triggered by the built environment. He tells me that whenever he arrives in a building he hasn't been to before, the first thing he does is check where the exit is so that he can plan his escape.

We touch on the childhood trauma that he wrote about in his brilliant memoir, Toast, from his mother's death to his father's bullying. We discuss the roots of his lifelong interest in gardening, why he keeps a daily diary, and the importance of smell within the home.

This is a conversation I'll remember forever. Thank you, Nigel.

This episode was recorded in person at Nigel's home in London.

For more:

Pick up a copy of Nigel Slater's latest book, A Thousand Feasts: Small Moments of Joy … a Memoir of Sorts

Find out more about Nigel's collaboration with Perfumer H

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Pick up a copy of Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Laconic Collective

Graphic Design: Ben Tucker

Music: Simeon Walker

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Kevin McCloud: the Grand Designs presenter takes us behind the scenes of his own life

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 11:57:59 +0100

Kevin has been a fixture on our tellies for so many years that we feel like we know him. But, actually, I didn’t have a clue about his life story, so this conversation was really interesting for me. He tells me about growing up in what he refers to as an ‘architectural zoo’ of housing from different eras. We talk about his involvement with Footlights, the famous comedy troupe at Cambridge University, where he collaborated with Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie and Emma Thompson. And he explains why he’s spent years living in a camper van and why his future home will definitely have a view of the mountains. Kevin is one of the most engaging and fiercely intelligent guests I’ve spoken to on Homing In and he’s full of amusing anecdotes and top tips. I hope you enjoy the episode!

This episode was recorded in person at St Anne's Court, a home currently for sale on The Modern House.

For more:

Watch Grand Designs

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Skye Gyngell: a searingly honest portrait of a chef battling for her identity

Matt Gibberd — Tue, 30 Jul 2024 08:00:40 +0100

Skye Gyngell was born and raised in Sydney, but has never felt Australian. In this honest and heartfelt interview, she paints a picture of a deeply introverted child who wanted to “turn down the volume” on everybody. Her father, Bruce Gyngell, was the first person to appear on TV in Australia, and uttered the immortal line, “Good evening, and welcome to television.” She describes him as very flamboyant (“probably a real show-off, actually”), and he would send a chauffeur-driven car to pick her up from school. Sydney in the Seventies was a tight-knit community where everyone knew each other’s business, and, as a sensitive personality, she found the attention impossible to deal with. As soon as she turned 18, she fled to Europe, and has never looked back.

We explore her life story through the lens of the homes she’s lived in… from the house on stilts that was built by her parents, to her beautiful home in west London where we recorded this episode.

For more:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Visit Spring and Heckfield Place

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Ruth Rogers: London’s favourite chef on creating an iconic house

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 16:54:33 +0100

For Ruth Rogers, home is at the very heart of everything. Her legendary London restaurant, the River Cafe, is founded on community, friendship and home cooking. Her iconic house in Chelsea, which she co-created with her architect husband, Richard Rogers, has been the backdrop to family life for forty years and has influenced a generation of homeowners to live with light and space. Ruthie invited me in to discuss her extraordinary life through the lens of the homes she has lived in. She describes with great poignancy how her house provides her with comfort following Richard’s death. She talks about growing up in the Borscht Belt near New York, and a chance encounter with Bob Dylan in Woodstock. Having personally co-founded a business in an industry I knew nothing about, I can relate to Ruthie’s inspiring story of starting the River Cafe with no restaurant experience and making things up as she went along. She tells me about how the restaurant has become a home from home, and why it’s been a breeding ground for some of the world’s most celebrated chefs, including Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, April Bloomfield and Allegra McEvedy. She talks about the influences behind her Chelsea home, from the Maison de Verre in Paris to the Italian piazzas of Pienza and Montepulciano, and why a rather special set of coloured pencils is one of the first things she would save in a house fire.

This conversation was recorded in person at Ruth Rogers’ home in Chelsea, London.

For more on Ruth Rogers:

Watch our film at the home of Ruth and Richard Rogers

Visit the River Café

Listen to Ruth’s podcast, Ruthie’s Table Four

For more from Matt Gibberd and The Modern House:

Check out Matt's latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Mary Portas: the queen of the high street’s inspiring journey from homeless orphan to a London townhouse that’s all hers

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 18 Jul 2024 12:25:06 +0100

Most of us know Mary Portas as a swashbuckling TV presenter with a flame-red bob, but her career away from the screen has been no less remarkable. She did the window displays for Topshop during its heyday and was the creative director of Harvey Nichols when it was immortalised on Absolutely Fabulous. Nowadays, however, she runs her consultancy, Portas, which helps brands create purpose and beauty in everything they do. As this episode reveals, her life story is incredibly rich and filled with both trauma and triumph.

This episode was recorded in person at the Portas offices, London.

For more:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Visit Portas

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Cath Kidston: the floral-obsessed entrepreneur on why life isn’t always a bed of roses

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 12:31:24 +0100

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 episode

Check out Cath Kidston’s latest venture, C.Atherley

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jonny Gent: music, martinis and mayhem from the founder of Sessions Arts Club

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 28 Jun 2024 15:53:36 +0100

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 episode

Check out Sessions Arts Club and Boath House

Take a look at Jonny Gent’s latest work

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer and Editor: Hannah Phillips

Mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Tim Ross: the Australian comedian on the life-changing effect of modest, modernist buildings – and tinted moisturiser

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 21 Jun 2024 18:06:37 +0100

A while back, Tim came to London to perform at the Isokon building in Belsize Park, and I managed to catch up with him to record this podcast.

As a small boy in the Seventies, Tim quietly absorbed the lessons of modernist architecture. He remembers accompanying his parents to a dinner party at a modern house, where the sound of laughter reverberated around the circular lounge; his career seems to have been about trying to recapture that heady moment.

In 2003, he bought his own modernist house in Sydney, a move which, he says, ‘changed my life for the better’. His fascination with architecture and design had previously been a solitary pursuit, but the house provided a way to meet like-minded people and a launchpad for his TV career.

Tim is really great company, and we talk about all sorts of things. He explains how he’s an outlier in his family, and what it felt like to perform on stage for the first time.

He tells me about the day the Beastie Boys came to visit and wouldn’t leave, why he’d rather learn to be a builder than go through the stress of another renovation project, and why he swears by the uplifting effects of tinted moisturiser.

This episode was recorded in person in Brick Lane, London.

For more:

Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episode

Discover more about Tim Ross and his live shows

See more of his Sydney home

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young and Ben Tucker

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Luke Edward hall: the artist and designer pulls back the curtain to reveal his colourful life story

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 07 Jun 2024 17:41:30 +0100

Luke has kindly invited us to his house in the Cotswolds, which he shares with his husband, Duncan Campbell, and a pair of enthusiastic whippets.

I was intrigued to learn that this modern-day dandy comes from a bog-standard commuter town, and like many of the people I talk to on this podcast, his creative impulses offered a route out of mediocrity.

He tells me his very personal backstory of being estranged from his father at a young age, and what it was like to come out as gay to his family.

We talk about his witty, whimsical interpretation of the English Country House Style, why he believes you should invest yourself financially and emotionally in a rental, and why he chose to paint his London flat in ‘Pepto-Bismol pink’ before getting rid of it a few days later.

This episode was recorded in person at Luke’s cottage in the Cotswolds.

For more:

Check out the work of Luke Edward Hall

See images of the home he shares with Duncan Campbell over on our sister website, Inigo

Visit The Modern House website

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young and Ben Tucker

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

James Lohan: the co-founder of Mr & Mrs Smith on how his first experience of home shaped an obsession with boutique hotels

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 24 May 2024 16:45:40 +0100

This is the first time we’ve recorded an episode in a hotel suite, and that’s because today’s guest knows more about opening doors to glamorous guesthouses than anyone else.

James Lohan co-founded the travel company Mr & Mrs Smith with his wife Tamara back in 2003, and since then he’s visited nearly 4,000 hotels in the name of research.

James is a gregarious character with some brilliant tales to tell.We discuss his earliest experiences as an entrepreneur, from selling cheese toasties at school, to setting up a mobile disco called Your Mother Wouldn’t Like It.

He tells me about his refurbishment of a Dutch barge on the Thames – complete with flock wallpaper and a freestanding bath – and what he’s learned from hotels that we might apply to our homes.

This episode was recorded in person at The Nomad Hotel, London.

For more:

Check out Mr & Mrs Smith

Visit The Modern House website

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young and Ben Tucker

This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Claudia Donaldson: the pioneering editor and creative director on creating a sanctuary at home – and the luxury of pink loo roll

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 26 Apr 2024 17:33:25 +0100

During her tenure at Nowness, Claudia commissioned the well-known ‘In Residence’ series, which took us inside the homes of the biggest names in design and architecture. Today, I’m meeting Claudia in her beautiful London home to give her a taste of her own journalistic medicine …

She tells me about what it was like to grow up in an English prototype of the American dream, and talks fondly about her ‘impossibly glamorous’ grandparents’ house, which had shagpile carpet, pink loo roll and a telephone next to the sunken bath.

We discuss why she prefers to define space with furniture rather than architecture, what happened when she broke her hip and couldn’t get down the stairs, why a home is never truly finished, and the power of procrastination.

This episode was recorded at Claudia's home in north west London.

For more:

Visit The Modern House website for images of some the spaces discussed in this episode

Check out Cloakroom

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Philippe Malouin: the experimental designer on creating with integrity – and the art of upcycling

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 18:25:57 +0100

Philippe designs everything from furniture to lighting, combining modern geometry with a sense of humour and materials that are built to last. I first met him many years ago, when he was doing some work with my wife, Faye Toogood. We’d turned our bedroom into a makeshift design studio, and Philippe and a few others would come round to make maquettes and geek out about ergonomics.

Nowadays, he’s a burly, bearded bear of a man with an extra 20kg of muscle, but his wit and warmth are the same as I remember. He tells me about what it was like to grow up beside a lake in Canada. From the age of seven, he would take himself off in his boat for the whole day, catching fish and swimming off the islands.

This independent, practical spirit has continued into adult life. He largely works on his own, because that’s how he likes it. His studio in Hackney, where we met to record this conversation, is the epicentre of his creative output – a place where he can build something, obsess over which type of screw he’s going to use, or just sit and daydream.

He tells me what it’s like to create a home from stuff that others have thrown away, how he saved up to buy his favourite sofa and kept it wrapped in plastic for two years, and why space is the ultimate luxury.

This episode was recorded in person, at Philippe Malouin’s studio in East London.

For more:

Visit The Modern House website to see images of the spaces discussed in this episode

Check out Philippe Malouin’s latest work

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Sumayya Vally: the South African architect on how growing up in a township defined her sense of place

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 20:09:50 +0000

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.

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Tim Little: the owner of Grenson footwear on his journey from Adidas ad man to sole trader

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 15:19:08 +0000

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.

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Production: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jeremy Lee: the much-loved chef who grew up in a wedge of cheddar

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 01 Mar 2024 17:08:26 +0000

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 episode

Watch Homing In, the film series.

Check out Jeremy’s cookbook, Cooking

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Akram Khan: the poignant story of a man who found his voice through dance

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 19 Jan 2024 10:58:44 +0000

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 episode

Check out the latest from the Akram Khan Company

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode was sponsored by Vitsoe

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Roksanda Ilinčić: the fashion designer’s colourful journey through Belgrade, Britain and Brazil

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 17:23:27 +0000

I first met Roksanda in 2006. We were selling her flat in King’s Cross, which was unlike anything I’d seen before: a brooding space with cast-concrete worktops, a black resin floor and mirrored lightwells. It had a subterranean lap-pool that was completely black, like a cave, where one could imagine Bruce Wayne practising his backstroke. Roksanda had recently shown her first collection at London Fashion Week and garments dangled enticingly from rails in her workspace. Some 18 years later, I’ve come to meet her in her studio in the East End to record this podcast. As before, her latest collection is on display, only this time the hanging rails have multiplied by a factor of a hundred. The colours are even more vibrant. Roksanda is no longer simply a name; it’s a brand with a global following.

I loved finding out more about Roksanda’s life story. She talks passionately about the importance of nature in her life, from the old quince trees in her grandparents’ garden to the inside-out living of her favourite Modernist houses in Brazil. She describes how the birth of her daughter was like a portal opening up, which gave her new confidence and a sense of perspective. She tells me about how she’s managed to bring architecture into fashion, and why she believes that clothes are there to provide shelter and protection in the same way that a home does.

Thank you so much for listening, as always, and I really hope you enjoy it!

This episode was recorded in person at Roksanda’s East London studio.

For more:

Visit our website to see images of the spaces discussed

Check out Roksanda’s latest collection

Check out The Lost House sales listing, over on The Modern House

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Producer: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Rosh Mahtani: the Alighieri founder’s inspiring journey from school outcast to acclaimed entrepreneur

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 12:34:09 +0000

Rosh is founder of the brilliant jewellery company Alighieri. We discuss her life story through the prism of the homes she’s lived in, from humble beginnings in Zambia to the beautifully designed flat she now owns in Clerkenwell. When Rosh moved to London at the age of eight, she was the only person of colour in her school. She tells me how she’s managed to channel this feeling of alienation towards a personal mission of bringing people together, celebrating commonality rather than difference. We talk about the importance of ritual at home and why she likes living on her own. We also discuss her suspicion of the colour green, the joy of negative space and why she imagines herself living in the desert as an old lady. Hope you enjoy it!

This episode was recorded in person at Rosh's London studio.

For more:

Visit Alighieri

See images of Rosh's own home and Frey House over on The Modern House

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Production: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Duncan McLeod: the emotional story of an architect whose home is a source of magic and motivation

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 14:12:52 +0000

I’ve known Duncan for many years now and he’s definitely one of the good guys. We first met when I was commissioned to write a piece for The World of Interiors about the amazing home in west London he shares with his wife, Lyndsay Milne McLeod, and their son, Oban. Duncan’s kindly invited me back to the house to record this episode. He tells me about how growing up on building sites brought him close to his father, the importance of magic in architecture and why he believes you should always design a house as if you’re playing hide-and-seek in it. Duncan certainly isn’t the first guest to shed a tear or two on this podcast and I think this is a really lovely, heartfelt conversation.

This episode was recorded at Duncan's home in West London.

For more:

Check out Studio McLeod's latest work

Visit our website for images of places discussed, and to read our interview with Duncan McLeod

Production: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jacqueline Rabun: the jewellery designer on why music, meditation and modernism are the cornerstones of life in Los Angeles

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 17:17:16 +0000

Jacqueline is a jewellery designer whose work I’ve admired for many years, probably because it’s so architectural. As you probably know by now, we try to record these podcasts in the guest’s home whenever possible, and this one is particularly exciting on that front, because Jacqueline lives in a 1960s house perched on a hillside in Los Angeles. As is the custom on this podcast, I asked Jacqueline to talk about a home from her past, her current place, and a home of the future. She told me what it was like to grow up in a big family, and how the soul music that boomed around the house was somehow a form of defiance against the racial tension that African-Americans were feeling at that time. And we also talked about how the pandemic inspired her homing instinct, why she’s enjoying living with less and her love of mid-century modern houses.

This episode was recorded in person at Jacqueline's Los Angeles home studio.

For more:

Head to the Carpenters Workshop Gallery‘s London space, to visit ‘Jacqueline Rabun: A Retrospective’

Check out Jacqueline Rabun’s latest work

Find out more about her dream home, the Loring House

Visit our website for images and details of the places discussed

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Production: Hannah Phillips

Editing and mixing: Oscar Crawford

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Music: Father

This episode is sponsored by Vitsoe.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Glenn Adamson: the curator on why a New York ‘love shack’ stole his heart

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 14 Sep 2023 12:25:05 +0100

Glenn's a brilliant curator and writer with a particular interest in craft. If that conjures up an image of lace doilies and crocheted waistcoats, then don't panic!

Back in 2011, he put together the amazing 'Postmodernism' exhibition at the V&A in London, which was a riot of Memphis pattern and colour; and more recently, he's co-curated a show called 'Mirror Mirror' at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. Glenn writes beautifully – and his book Fewer, Better Things was a really big influence on my own book, A Modern Way to Live. A phrase he uses a lot is 'material intelligence', which is the idea that we should try to understand the things we choose to live with – where they've come from and how they've been made. I don’t know if it's material intelligence or old-fashioned fate that led Glenn to find his home in Upstate New York, but it really is the physical manifestation of everything he believes in. We also chatted about his place in east London, what it's like to be an identical twin, his thoughts on the metaverse and all sorts of other things. Glenn is one of the most erudite people I know and his thoughtfulness is something we could all learn from.

This episode was recorded in person at Glenn's east London home.

For more:

Head over to The Modern House website for images of the places discussed

Watch the B-52's 'Love Shack' music video

Check out the house built by a librarian's collection of bricks

Hans Ulrich Obrist: the celebrated curator on why home has always been a place of artistic discovery

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 08:33:39 +0100

Hans Ulrich Obrist is the artistic director of the Serpentine Gallery in Kensington, west London, and is universally acknowledged as one of the most important and prolific art curators of our time. When I spoke to him at his office, I discovered a force of nature with an energy unlike that of anyone I’ve met before. His notion of home is also pretty extreme. When he was a student, he turned his flat into a gallery and he’s lived in some of the world’s most famous house-museums. This episode doesn’t follow the usual format, but I think it’s a really interesting portrait of a brilliant man.

This conversation was recorded in person in Hans Ulrich Obrist’s office at the Serpentine gallery.

For more:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Visit The Serpentine Gallery

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Tony Chambers: the magazine editor’s transformative journey from a Liverpool terrace to the Barbican penthouse of his dreams

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 21 Jul 2023 14:26:27 +0100

Tony’s life story is incredibly inspiring. He began his career at The Sunday Times Magazine, then became the art director of GQ and was later appointed editor-in-chief of Wallpaper*, which arguably defined the design aesthetic of the noughties and taught us all how to live like urbane Scandinavians. We discussed his childhood home in the 1970s – which was a riot of swirly brown carpet, chintz cushions and fake-brick wallpaper – and his experience living on the Barbican estate in London for 27 years, which is longer than anyone else I know.

This conversation was recorded in person at Tony’s Barbican home.

For more:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Visit Tony Chambers' design agency, TC & Friends

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Frances Morris: the Tate Modern director on why she returns to her childhood home

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 06 Jul 2023 09:57:00 +0100

Where does our spirit go when we die? Frances Morris has this question figured out: she will return to the home in which she was born, a Georgian house abreast the Meridian Line in Greenwich. In this deeply personal conversation, Frances explains why her childhood home has such an emotional hold over her. Southeast London has been the backdrop to her whole life, and it's fitting that she has worked at the forefront of its most important cultural institution: Tate Modern. Not only was she the gallery's first female director, but Frances has also redefined the perception of female artists, spearheading retrospectives of Louise Bourgeois, Yayoi Kusama, Agnes Martin and others. Shortly before we recorded this podcast, it was announced that she will be leaving for pastures new. I've come to meet her in her office within the bowels of the gallery, and, understandably, she is in reflective mood.

This is one of the most memorable conversations I've ever had. Frances feels like someone I've known for ever, and her background and story have significant parallels with my own. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

This conversation was recorded in person at the Tate Modern.

For more on Frances Morris:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Visit the Tate Modern

For more from the The Modern House:

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

India Mahdavi: the interior designer on how a rented apartment provides the stable home a nomadic childhood never could

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 23 Jun 2023 19:24:32 +0100

Known as the Queen of Colour, India has designed upbeat bars and radical restaurants from Miami to Mexico City. Her Gallery restaurant at Sketch in London became one of the most inspirational spaces of our time, and single-handedly changed the public perception of the colour pink.

Last autumn, I hopped on the Eurostar to go and meet her at home in Paris. I arrived completely drenched from a rainstorm, but my frost-bitten cockles were soon warmed by a cup of tea and a fireside chat with India in her beautiful apartment. She told me about how her early years in Massachusetts influenced her love of bright colours, from the strawberry milkshakes she drank to the Technicolor cartoons she watched on TV. One day, she and her family relocated very suddenly to Germany, arriving to a neo-Gothic house straight out of the Addams Family. Her world turned black-and-white, and she felt like an unwelcome foreigner. Soon they moved on again, this time to France, where she started to find a way to express herself through making things and tapping into her creativity.

What I found so interesting about our conversation was discovering how India has reacted against her itinerant childhood and established a very defined sense of place as an adult. Her studio, her showroom and her home are all located in a single block in Paris, where she's lived for more than 25 years. She doesn't even have to cross the road to carry out all the functions of everyday life.

As India gets older, she feels increasingly drawn to her native countries of Iran and Egypt. She's bought a house in Arles that's hidden among cypress trees and reminds her of Tehran in the 1970s. All in all, India's past, present and future are acutely defined by the notion of home and belonging – everything that this podcast is about.This conversation was recorded in person at India’s home in Paris.

For more on India Mahdavi:

Head over to our website for more images of the places discussed

Check out India's website

Nick Knight: the iconic photographer on how well-designed spaces make life better

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 09 Jun 2023 08:23:40 +0100

Nick is a legendary photographer and founder of the influential website SHOWstudio, which has pioneered the use of moving image in fashion. I've come to his London studio to find out more about his incredibly colourful life through the lens of the homes he's lived in. He tells me about growing up in a grandiose apartment in Paris, the impact of his dyslexia, and how falling in love with photography unlocked a relentless work ethic. His unlikely entrypoint into image-making was joining a group of skinheads as a teenager, mainly because he liked the look of the girls. He talks about the life-changing experience of building a house in his twenties, with a certain young architect named David Chipperfield. We discuss the future of AI, how being a photographer gives him unique access to anyone in the world, and the day he turned Lady Gaga into a man. As Nick says, 'there’s nothing more important than the spaces you live in, for shaping you, how you feel about things, making you feel positive about life and love.' He's full of wisdom and wit, and this is certainly a conversation I will always remember.

This conversation was recorded in person at SHOWstudio, London.

For more on Nick Knight:

Head over to our website for more images of Nick’s home

Check out SHOWstudio

Read more about the David Chipperfield project

For more from the The Modern House:

Check out Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Executive Producer: Kate Taylor of Feast Collective

Production: Hannah Phillips

Music: Father

Graphic Design: Tom Young

To get in touch, email us at podcast@themodernhouse.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Homing In Preview

Matt Gibberd — Mon, 22 May 2023 18:05:47 +0100

What does home reveal about who we are? Almost everything, it turns out, as we have discovered recording conversations with cultural contributors, business innovators and creative luminaires for our new podcast, Homing In, which we are excited to share with you later this week. The show takes over from the previous iteration of our podcast with an updated format. Our co-founder Matt Gibberd asks guests to discuss the place they grew up in, their current home, and their thoughts on future living – revealing the emotional experiences that underpin some of our most inspiring public figures. Be prepared for tears, laughter, and everything in between.

The Modern House is an estate agency that helps people live in more thoughtful and beautiful ways. If you have a modern home to sell, get in touch to find out how we can maximise its value.

To hear more from The Modern House:

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

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★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Christopher Kane: Fashion Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 07:00:48 +0100

Christopher Kane is the fashion designer known for his subversive yet refined clothes. He’s also a charming and chatty Scotsman, with plenty of humour and good stories to go round, including an incident with wild monkeys at an Indonesian resort and his first encounter with Donatella Versace. His top architectural choices in the world, meanwhile, are full of superstition and spirituality. Plus, he talks the joys of growing up in a Scottish household and explains why he’ll always be a devotee of the TV.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

Follow The Modern House Instagram

Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Kevin Carmody: Architect

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 21 Jul 2022 18:17:45 +0100

Architect Kevin Carmody, co-founder of Carmody Groarke, is joined by Matt Gibberd (and some rather sweet special guests) on location at one of his current projects in the verdant countryside of East Sussex. Just like his archive of work, Kevin’s three favourite spaces are diverse and meticulously designed, from a house that appears to be dissolving to one that healed a marriage. Plus, he explains how to design a house so that it doesn’t, in fact, look like one at all.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Penny Martin: Editor

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 19:04:27 +0100

Penny Martin is the Glaswegian wordsmith perhaps best known for leading The Gentlewoman’s masthead as editor in chief. Dialling in from her home in Fife, Scotland, where she overlooks the sea, Penny discusses her career climb, including a stint as a tour guide at the Glasgow School of Art, and reveals some of her earliest conversations with her former boss, the fashion photographer Nick Knight. Plus, she shares her favourite three living spaces in the world.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Eudon Choi: Fashion Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 08:07:15 +0100

Eudon Choi is a fashion designer celebrated for his masterful craftsmanship, clean architectural lines and bold colour palette – and his top three living spaces around the world share the same sensibilities as his clothes. Eudon also speaks on the joys of his own home in Shoreditch, and why he finds it more of a challenge to pick colours for his walls than for his collections.

Check out the nowness.com In Residence Series to see the film about Luis Barragan's Casa Gilardi that Matt mentions in the interview.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

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★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Sarah Featherstone: Architect

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 09:49:19 +0100

Sarah Featherstone is a RIBA award-winning architect, co-founder of practice Featherstone Young, and lecturer at Central Saint Martins. We’re particularly drawn to Sarah’s way of thinking, for when it comes to architecture, she is less interested in bricks and mortar and more in the way in which people inhabit spaces. Listen to the episode now to discover her top three living spaces and hear about her unlikely encounter with Right Said Fred.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Laura Jackson: Broadcaster and Entrepreneur

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 19 May 2022 01:00:45 +0100

Laura Jackson is a supper-club host, broadcaster and, most recently, founder of homeware marketplace Glassette. She is also known for her love of – and astute eye for – interiors, which makes her well placed to discuss her top three living spaces in the world with our host, Matt Gibberd. Listen to the episode now to discover her choices, tips for creating a home wherever she may be and to find out why she wants to live like Forrest Gump.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Margaret Howell: Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 02 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

On The Modern House Podcast, our host Matt Gibberd invites design enthusiasts to select their top three living spaces in the world. The guest of this episode is indeed a design enthusiast, but she’s also quite the expert: it’s Margaret Howell. The designer is synonymous with three things in particular: a quintessential Britishness, quality craftsmanship and materials. So it makes perfect sense that this trio unites her top three living spaces. Listen to discover the stories behind her selection. Plus, she discusses her early memories of design and endless love of making things.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Reggie Yates: Director

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 18 Nov 2021 06:00:00 +0000

If you’re a millennial who grew up watching TV in Britain, chances are you’ll remember Reggie Yates from his days as a TV presenter. As the latest guest on our podcast, the writer and director shares his top three favourite living spaces with out host and co-founder Matt Gibberd. Two common threads run throughout Reggie’s choices: the first is London, the backdrop to his life, home and now film. The second is community, something that he holds close to his heart. As he says, “a building is nothing without the people in it”.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Watch our House Tour with Reggie on YouTube

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★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Albert Hill: The Modern House Co-Founder

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 28 Oct 2021 06:00:00 +0100

This episode our guest is one that’s rather close to home. It’s Albert Hill: who co-founded The Modern House 16 years ago with his childhood friend and our podcast host, Matt Gibberd. Here, the duo sit down at Albert’s workspace in their hometown of Hampshire and reflect on the The Modern House’s journey. Plus, Albert discusses being a collector, his favourite homes and just how they have shaped him.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Clare Wright: Architect

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 16 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

In our latest episode, Clare Wright, co-founder of Wright & Wright Architects, shares her top three living spaces in the world. While Clare’s choices are diverse, there’s one notable theme that neatly ties her selection together.

Find out more on The Modern House.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Watch our Homing In films on YouTube

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jay Osgerby: Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Our next guest in the chair is designer Jay Osgerby, one half of Barber Osgerby – the innovative design studio he helms alongside his friend and partner Ed Barber – his work spans architecture, interiors, furniture and product design. Jay’s top three living spaces around the world are a testament to his love of – and knack for – experimental design. He takes us on a journey through architecture, from Crete to Paris to London, and shares why each space holds particular significance for him.

Find out more at The Modern House site.

Subscribe to The Modern House newsletter for weekly interiors inspiration

Find out more about Matt Gibberd’s latest book, A Modern Way To Live

Follow Matt Gibberd on Instagram

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Paloma Faith: Singer-Songwriter

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 19 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

The new series of The Modern House podcast is in full swing. Our next guest is the ever-eccentric, self-confessed fan of maximalism, singer-songwriter Paloma Faith. Unsurprisingly, her top three living spaces in the world are equally eclectic, from a seaside cottage like no other to the whimsical space of an interior designer and even a London nightclub - a first for The Modern House Podcast.

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John Pawson, Designer: Special Episode

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0100

Calling all John Pawson super fans and architecture enthusiasts alike: in this special episode, the celebrated architect gives Matt Gibberd a walking tour of Home Farm, his self-designed, countryside residence in the Cotswolds, Oxfordshire. Ever wondered what’s inside John’s pantry? What grows in his orchard? Where he sources his furniture? Listen now to find out.

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John Pawson: Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 29 Jul 2021 01:00:00 +0100

It’s here: the new series of The Modern House Podcast, in which Matt Gibberd invites architects, designers, artists, and creatives to share their top three living spaces in the world and discuss the timeless design principles that contribute to the success of their choices – from space to light; materials to a connection with nature. Our guest for the first episode of Series Two is John Pawson, the godfather of minimalist architecture.

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Season 2 Preview

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 01:00:00 +0100

Next week, we launch a new series of The Modern House podcast, in which we invite architects, designers, artists and creatives to share their top three living spaces around the world. In our second series you can expect conversations with John Pawson, designer Jay Osgerby, singer-songwriter Paloma Faith and more, as we continue to explore the significance of home. Make sure to follow the show to be the first to hear of new episodes.

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Jeff Taylor: Founder, Courier Magazine

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 14:00:00 +0000

Courier magazine seeks out stories of people doing things on their own terms. But what about its founder, Jeff Taylor? Find out how he approaches life, work and home on this episode, plus discover what Jeff picked as his top three living spaces around the world.

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Ross Bailey: Entrepreneur

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 06:00:00 +0000

How has the global pandemic changed our high streets? Is the future of the local shop looking better or worse after Covid? Hear Ross Bailey, founder and CEO of Appear Here, the ‘Airbnb for retail’, discuss all that and more on this issue of the podcast. Plus, what did Ross select as his top three living spaces in the world?

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Simon Allford: Architect

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 06:30:00 +0000

On the tenth episode of our podcast, Simon Allford, co-founder of international architecture practice AHMM and future RIBA president, talks architecture, homes and the power of ‘everyday buildings’. Plus, how has he turned a swimming pool into a living space? And what are his top three living spaces anywhere in the world? Tune in now to find out.

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Ab Rogers: Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 01:00:00 +0100

Ab Rogers is the creative director of his namesake design and architecture studio, based in east London. Tune in to hear how a childhood "marinated in design", including site visits to the Centre Pompidou, designed by his father, Richard Rogers, lay the foundation for a career defined by experimentation and a trademark use of bold colours.

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Charlie Casely-Hayford: Fashion Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 09 Jul 2020 06:00:00 +0100

For fashion designer Charlie Casely-Hayford, a sense of personal style runs deep. Son of the late influential designer Joe Casely-Hayford OBE, he grew accustomed to the world of fashion from an early age. Father and son teamed up to form their own label in 2009. Listen as Charlie reflects on his aesthetic, work and life; his appreciation of Japanese craft; and how he sees his retirement looking, as he picks his top three favourite living spaces around the world.

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Michael Craig-Martin: Artist

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 18 Jun 2020 06:00:00 +0100

Michael Craig-Martin, internationally-renowned conceptual artist, shares with us his favourite living spaces and reflects on his decades-long career and love of modernist design. Craig-Martin explains why he has a thing for minimalism, and what it was like to teach the YBA artists Damien Hirst and Sarah Lucas, in the mid-1980s.

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Lucinda Chambers: Fashion Designer and Entrepreneur

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 29 May 2020 06:30:00 +0100

Lucinda Chambers is the ex fashion director of British Vogue, turned fashion designer and entrepreneur. Tune in to hear Chambers reflect on her peripatetic childhood, her career at Vogue and her life-long love of fashion and interiors, as well as her top three living spaces across the world.

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Faye Toogood: Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 07 May 2020 06:00:00 +0100

Faye Toogood is a multi-disciplinary designer whose work, spanning furniture, interiors and fashion, is subject to her explorative approach to form, fondness of colours inspired by British landscapes and a sculptor’s love of materials. Listen as Toogood reveals her affinity with the Bloomsbury group’s flamboyance, Sri Lankan modernism and California’s mid-century design legacy.

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Edmund de Waal: Artist and Writer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 23 Apr 2020 09:13:53 +0100

Edmund de Waal, internationally renowned artist and writer, talks to us about architecture as craft and the beauty of materials, a fascination that was sparked when he began making pottery aged just five. Listen as de Waal takes us on a journey from an experimental modernist family home in California to an Arts and Crafts icon in Bexleyheath, and hear why, for him, home is retreat.

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Jonathan Tuckey: Architectural Designer

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 02 Apr 2020 13:22:02 +0100

Jonathan Tuckey came to architecture via studying social anthropology, which taught him the human value of well-designed spaces and the importance of home. It might also explain his taste for working with old buildings, forging original designs with contemporary materials from the remnants of bakeries, ironmongers, chapels and more.

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Tom Broughton: Founder of Cubitts

Matt Gibberd — Thu, 05 Mar 2020 20:20:01 +0000

Welcome to the Isokon penthouse, home of Tom Broughton, founder of modern spectacle makers Cubitts. It’s no surprise Tom chose this iconic building, which he bought via the Modern House in 2018, as his first pick of top three homes. We explore the charming economy of the design, how to furnish the museum-quality space and the appeal of living in a building that once operated as the de facto London campus of the Bauhaus for the German school’s émigré faculty staff.

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Rosa Park: Editor of Cereal magazine

Matt Gibberd — Fri, 24 Jan 2020 01:41:12 +0000

Rosa Park is founding editor of Cereal, which is dedicated to thoughtful travel and lifestyle stories and known for its pared-back aesthetic. Here she reveals her love of Bath’s limestone buildings, the unique style of her family home - and why you'd better not call her a minimalist.