UNBELIEVABLE: Phineas harper | History Defined

Free land for those who will build social homes on it. Is this the radical solution to the UK’s housing problem?

A bold south London initiative to give land to community groups rather than private developers could transform the system, says writer Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Oct 8

Not just for rich people: the progressive case for air conditioning

Air conditioning can bring significant benefits but also real harms. The answer is for it to take its place alongside a comprehensive state plan for climate adaptation, says writer and curator Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Jun 29

Britain’s building standards are now so bad, even the super-rich are facing housing misery

Residents of the UK’s most expensive flats have won a court case over defective pipework. If their homes are shoddily built, what hope do the rest of us have, asks writer and curator Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Feb 11

Banning cars in city centres has worked around the world. Why isn’t London’s Oxford Street pedestrianised yet?

From Sydney to Seoul, the results have been positive. It’s time for Sadiq Khan to put his foot down, says writer and curator Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · May 6, 2025

In Cannes, I saw English councils pander to gilet-wearing property developers – at the cost of their residents

Desperate local authorities are seeking private investors to build housing. It may be profitable for shareholders but it’s destructive for everyone else, says writer and curator Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Mar 26, 2025

Two-thirds of workers in England can’t afford private rent. If that’s not a crisis, what is?

The government has promised to fix the housing affordability crisis. Relying on the private sector will only make things worse, says writer Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Dec 31, 2024

I wear a white poppy because Remembrance Day’s staged fervour does little to honour my grandad

I wear it for peace, for the killed civilians – and for all the conscripts, including my relative, who were forced to fight, says writer Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Nov 8, 2024

Yimbys hear this – simply building more homes won’t solve our housing crisis

The ‘yes in my back yard’ voices are getting louder, but housebuilding quality is more important than quantity, says writer and curator Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Sep 29, 2024

Planning changed Britain for the better in the postwar years – and it can do the same now

Labour’s proposals for reform are a start, but we need the system to be more ambitious, more imaginative and more proactive, says writer Phineas Harper

The Guardian - UK · Aug 14, 2024

July design news: 50 years of Casio, an iPod revival and mending as an art

A new exhibition showcases British hobbies, the Rotterdam Architectural Biennial and a South Asian London city map

The Guardian - UK · Jul 24, 2024