My first thought on seeing 43 Portland Street, Cheltenham was "Why would you do such a thing?" Here we have a pleasant enough stone-faced villa in the classical style, dating from around 1830 or 1840, with a plain pediment above a three-bay front, four full-height Ionic pilasters, a central entrance and ground floor rustication. On to this carefully composed building someone, probably in the C19, added rendered wings that in no way complement the original building and succeed in making it look like it is being squashed from both sides. The perpetrator of this crime didn't even make it completely symmetrical - spot the first floor drip-mould on the left wing that is missing from the right wing. Amazing!
photo © T. Boughen Camera: Nikon Z 5
