LISTED BRITAIN: KEVIN McCLOUD TRAVELS AROUND THE COUNTRY FOR NEW CHANNEL 4 SERIES

Across five episodes Kevin will travel the length and breadth of the country to uncover the stories behind some of Britain’s most remarkable buildings and structures, exploring why places as diverse as Coventry Cathedral and the Penguin Pool at London Zoo have been judged worthy of the highest level of protection.

Across England, Scotland and Wales, Kevin visits more than twenty Grade I and Category A listed landmarks: a Victorian fairy-tale castle in the Welsh hills, a grotto lined with four million mysterious shells, a bombed cathedral whose ruins were deliberately left standing, and a futuristic steel icon in the City of London that looked as though it had landed from another world. Along the way, he meets the conservators, campaigners, owners and obsessives who protect these places, care for them and fight to keep them alive.

This is heritage with the doors thrown open, as Kevin is invited into parts of these structures the public never normally sees, as he meets the people who care for them and gets hands-on himself. At Crystal Palace Park, he helps repair a dinosaur. In the City of London, he opens Tower Bridge. At Jodrell Bank, he climbs inside the Lovell Telescope and stands on the dish itself. Each visit offers rare access and a completely new view of these familiar places.

As well as celebrating an extraordinary array of weird, wonderful and breathtaking buildings, the series also asks difficult questions about what we choose to protect, and what we are prepared to lose. Kevin considers the case of structures with no protection at all, including the Ratcliffe-on-Soar cooling towers, eight vast concrete giants already earmarked for demolition.  

Each episode is built around a different question but ultimately asks whether the heritage system is keeping pace with what people truly value, and whether we might one day regret losing the buildings we failed to fight for.

Kevin McCloud said, “Our built world reflects who we are; as individuals, families, neighbourhoods and as a nation.  We tacitly expect it to even tell us who we are.  So which bits of history - both ancient and recent - do we find useful?  Which bits do we keep, cherish and fight to see saved?  Is it our country houses built by the aristocracy, our cooling towers that speak of our recent industrial past or the old corner shop we use every week.

"And who gets to choose?  It’s been a huge and fascinating pleasure to make this series.  And to ask all these questions.   I’ve loved it.   The surprising outcome for me was learning just how important public opinion is becoming.  It turns out we can all get involved - in identifying which places and buildings matter to us AND then helping to save it.. “ 

Ned Williams said, "This series sees Kevin explore Britain's most famous landmarks with his wonderful blend of wit, warmth and intelligence. He'll visit surprising hidden gems: the buildings on postcards and biscuit tins, the places we queue to visit on a Sunday, and the ones we never normally get to see at all. We think we know them, but this series gets right inside them, and uncovers the stories, struggles and secrets hidden within their walls, Kevin McCloud's Listed Britain is about what we choose to save, why it matters, and what our buildings say about us"

Jasper Hone said, "Across five episodes, Kevin brings his curiosity, craft knowledge and unmistakable passion for buildings to some of the UK’s most extraordinary Grade I and Category A landmarks, offering rare access and fresh perspectives on places we think we already know. At its heart, this is a new look at our heritage, asking what we choose to protect, what we’re prepared to lose, and what our buildings ultimately say about us. We’re delighted to be working with Plum Pictures, Bristol, to bring this ambitious and inquisitive new series to More4."

More details will be announced in due course.