by Jake Polden
Those who love their caravans and eco-friendly ideas will undoubtedly be glued to this Thursday’s episode of George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces, as the architect and TV personality has promised to renovate a poor neglected Swift Rapide caravan.
Unable to contain our excitement, we at CaravanTimes caught up with Quadrille Publishers, who publish the TV tie-in book that accompanies the programme, to bring you an exclusive look at the Amazing Circus Caravan.
And quite honestly, we don’t think amazing does it justice. Renovated from a wreck, as shown in last week’s brief preview of the episode, George’s final product is nothing short of a masterpiece.
Recycling a disused space, George explains in his book that the idea belonged to Michael Imerson – a young actor who, along with his troupe “dreamt of converting an ordinary nondescript vehicle into something quite unique”.
Amalgamating contemporary and traditional design, George states that the pair decided to “work up the caravan within a Steampunk style – a retro/futuristic sub-genre that mixes different historical, sci-fi, industrial and material elements to create a fantasy world”.
And the final product encapsulates all of the above and more. Quaintly decorative from the outside and deceivingly sizeable once the doors swing open to reveal a performance space, and a mini-museum.
Discussing the project, George explains that maintaining the structural integrity of the caravan while recycling, replacing and in some cases removing, fixtures and fittings was challenging:
“In order to open up what was originally an enclosed internal space one side of the caravan was removed and replaced with two large plywood doors opening outwards on hinges, thereby effectively turning the vehicle into a stage.”
The final touches to the caravan include a mismatched mass of cultural objects including paintings, old machinery, broken clocks and picture books.
But the true appeal, as explained by George, “lies in its dream-like quality where the audience’s imagination is challenged and encouraged – it’s an easy journey to another world”.
Now a completed project, Michael plans to entertain the British public by taking his touring caravan around the UK to different music and arts festivals.
If you are as excited to see the caravan as we are, then make sure you tune into this Thursday’s episode of George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces at 8pm on Channel 4.
The TV-tie in book, Amazing Spaces by George Clarke with Jane Field-Lewis, published by Quadrille Publishing, is now available for purchase, and offers fans of the show a closer look at the projects featured each week.
And for those who can’t wait until Thursday, click on the slide show below for a sneak peak at the final product:
