Architectural beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but some buildings push the boundaries of what can be considered visually appealing. From brutalist eyesores to perplexing modernist cubes, here are 15 of the UK’s least visually endearing buildings, each with its own unique charm—if you squint.
1. Preston Bus Station, Lancashire
An ode to brutalism so pure you might think it was built from surplus Cold War bunker materials. Its massive size and repetitive concrete patterns could either be described as hypnotically rhythmic or a cruel joke on symmetry.
2. Southgate Tube Station, London
Resembling a spaceship that crash-landed in the middle of London and was just left there, Southgate Tube Station is an example of Art Deco gone extraterrestrial.
3. Middlesbrough Central Library, Middlesbrough
A testament to the 1970s fascination with rectangles, this library looks like a stack of filing cabinets that have seen better days. Its drab facade makes reading Kafka inside feel almost cheerful.
4. Cumbernauld Town Centre, Scotland
Often crowned one of Britain’s ugliest buildings, this centre is a multi-tiered complex that looks as if someone decided to design a building based on a Jenga game in mid-collapse.
5. The Walkie Talkie, London
Officially known as 20 Fenchurch Street, it is affectionately nicknamed for its top-heavy shape resembling a two-way radio. It is bulky at the top, and once melted, parts of a Jaguar car parked below due to its reflective glare.
6. Northampton Bus Station
Nicknamed the ‘Mouth of Hell’ by less-than-fond locals, this bus station combines stark utilitarian design with the cheery ambiance of a dystopian novel setting.
7. New Street Signal Box, Birmingham
If you ever wondered what a cross between a Soviet blockhouse and a stack of discarded DVD players might look like, look no further than this signal box.
8. Park Hill, Sheffield
An attempt at utopian brutalism that ended up looking more like a prison for giants. While it’s been listed and part-renovated, it remains divisive—loved by some, loathed by aesthetics.
9. Mann Island Buildings, Liverpool
Three black diamond-shaped buildings that look like they were designed as stealth bombers but shrunk in the wash and mistakenly placed near Liverpool’s waterfront.
10. The Imax, Bournemouth
Sitting right on the beach, this building not only blocks sea views but does so with the grace of a bunker. It’s a stark reminder that not all entertainment needs to be housed in something entertaining to look at.
11. Elephant Building, Elephant & Castle, London
Named after the area but ironically resembling neither an elephant nor a castle. It’s a bulky, round, and confusing piece of architecture that makes you wonder what the designer was thinking.
12. Strata SE1, London
Famously topped with three wind turbines that rarely work, this building looks like a high-tech electric razor that could shave the clouds—a futuristic concept grounded by its inefficacy.
13. The Cube, Birmingham
Imagine a dice that’s stopped rolling but hasn’t quite settled on which number it’s showing. That’s The Cube—interesting from a distance but bewildering up close.
14. Waddon Estate, Croydon
A brutalist residential project that seems to confuse ‘foreboding’ with ‘welcoming’. Its stark, angular aesthetic might deter more than it invites.
15. Eden Project Biomes, Cornwall
Though not ugly in the traditional sense, these massive bubble-like domes in the middle of the countryside are a jarring sight amidst natural beauty. It’s like someone decided giant transparent golf balls were exactly what the rural landscape needed.
Eyesores Galore
While these buildings may not win any beauty contests, they certainly stand out—and isn’t that what architecture is all about? Maybe not, but at least they give tourists something to talk about besides the weather.
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / John B Hewitt.
For transparency, this content was partly developed with AI assistance and carefully curated by an experienced editor to be informative and ensure accuracy.