The Best Episodes of Grand Designs Season 17

Episode Rankings

1. #1 Fan Favorite
   

   7.9/10(42 votes)

   #1 - South Cornwall: Steam Bending House

   S17:E310/5/2016

   Kevin McCloud meets Tom and Danielle Raffield, whose lifelong passion has been steam-bending wood. They've used the technique to create extraordinary furniture and lighting, but now plan to use it on a larger scale. In an attempt to escape the confines of their tiny gamekeeper's lodge, they have decided to build a wavy wooden house in South Cornwall, completed with curved cladding, twisted furniture and interior walls covered with weathered timber. With a £100,000 budget, the pair have decided to do a lot of the building themselves, and Kevin is on hand to discover whether they're up to the challenge.

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2. 

   7.9/10(44 votes)

   #2 - Pembrokeshire: Low-Impact House

   S17:E610/26/2016

   Simon and Jasmine Dale want to build a three bed home on a hill with only £500 in the bank. And be self-sufficient in five years. Can it be done?

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3. 

   7.6/10(45 votes)

   #3 - Dursley: Gloucestershire Treehouse

   S17:E19/21/2016

   Kevin McCloud follows plumber Jon Martin and ceramicist Noreen Jaafar as they transform a neglected half-acre site in Gloucestershire. However, they are unable to cut down the 27 protected trees on the plot, so their solution is to build a big, modern treehouse with stilts screwed into the earth and balconies that will have views for miles.

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4. 

   7.1/10(45 votes)

   #4 - Horsham: Fun House

   S17:E29/28/2016

   Kevin McCloud follows Matt and Sophie White from Sussex as they build a giant family house of fun for themselves and their children. Going against the norm of designing a serious and practical home, the couple's property features a revolving bookcase door, secret dens, hiding places, one-way mirrors, and a fireman's pole. Matt uses a steel frame system to allow them to change the layout of the property, and other changes include amending the window shapes and sizes, and adding a half floor to create a James Bond room.

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5. 

   6.9/10(36 votes)

   #5 - Essex: Black House

   S17:E410/12/2016

   Kevin McCloud meets Michelle Parsons, an artist and teacher who decided to seize the day and build her own private hideaway in a woodland environment in Essex after she recovered from a serious illness. Together with her architect husband David, Michelle planned to construct a sleek, black-clad, three bedroom house complete with an art studio. However, torrential rain and a potentially disastrous gas leak stalled progress on the build, and as construction gets under way, Kevin wonders whether the couple's decision to eliminate windows on two sides of the property may leave them living in a gloomy bunker.

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6. 

   6.9/10(35 votes)

   #6 - The Wirral: Floating Timber House

   S17:E811/17/2016

   A couple turn their 1960s bungalow into a slick piece of 21st-century architecture. But what will the neighbours make of their ultra-modern wooden box?

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7. 

   6.7/10(41 votes)

   #7 - Bolton: Ultra-Modern House

   S17:E510/19/2016

   Bolton-based bricklayer Paul Rimmer, who has spent his career restoring and renovating Victorian terrace houses, sets his sights on constructing a state-of-the-art home on a budget of £350,000. However, instead of using the construction materials he has spent the past 40 years mastering, he has opted to build his new home from wood. Roping in his wife Carol, daughter Abby and a selection of favoured workmates, Paul and his team begin work on the ultra-modern, five-bedroom build, and Kevin McCloud reveals how extreme weather, exhaustion, and rapidly dwindling funds place the entire project in jeopardy.

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8. 

   6.7/10(37 votes)

   #8 - Devon: Plough-Shaped House

   S17:E711/2/2016

   Mark and Candida Diacono are building a house in the shape of a plough in Devon using a non-conventional team of builders. Will their ambitious plans lead to disaster or success?

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9. 

   0.0/10(0 votes)

   #9 - Revisited – Somerset: Cowshed

   S17:E95/30/2017

   Kevin returns to Somerset to see Ed and Vicky and their off-grid cowshed conversion, which they turned into a home and a business space.

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