The World's Most Extraordinary Homes

In this episode Piers Taylor and Caroline Quentin travel to Spain, a country with a tradition of flamboyant and fearless architecture. Their journey begins in north east Spain in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Here Fina, a famous chef, commissioned equally famous architects to build a family house. Made of metal and designed to resemble agricultural buildings, Rural House sits on the edge of an escarpment. It comprises 11 specially crafted steel boxes linked by a steel corridor buried into the land. Inside the decor is minimal with everything, even the TV, hidden within steel panels. Piers is 'thrilled' by this 'piece of high art' but Caroline wonders if she would like to live in a metal house.

In the quiet suburbs of Madrid architect Anton Garcia-Abril has built himself a daring family home. Hemeroscopium House is made of seven vast concrete and steel beams each supporting the other in an upward spiral held in place by a 20-tonne lump of granite. All these components would normally be found in huge construction projects like bridges and motorways, yet despite the 230-tonne concrete shell, the house feels light and homely inside. And Caroline loves the aerial swimming pool.

Solo House is hidden away in the wilderness of Aragon. A space-age circular building which sits on a plateau, it has external walls that slide open to create rooms that engage with the wilderness beyond. Caroline discovers that the owner is planning to build 15 high-concept houses here, all designed by leading architects.

The final destination is House for Three Sisters in the arid lands of Murcia. Three sisters wanted a holiday home to enjoy each other's company, but also have private spaces. So the architects created a fluid compound in which a trio of separate structures are arranged around a shared courtyard and rural land. The ranch-style buildings have their own views, roof terraces and enclosed terraces. Caroline and Piers join their hosts for a family feast in the shared courtyard.

Video: MP4 H264 @3.0Mbps
Audio: AAC 2ch @128Kbps
Subtitles: English .SRT