It’s been pleasing to see some coverage of twentieth century heritage in the mainstream media lately.

ABC TV’s The Collectors aired a segment on 7 September about a restored apartment (or a flat, to use a period-correct term that’s gone right out of vogue) in the c. 1940 Sydney building Number Seven Elizabeth Street. The owner, who bought the property perhaps without knowing its history, was captivated by his purchase and set about restoring the apartment with all its original Marion Hall Best furniture and fittings. The result looks a little more like a museum exhibit than a liveable home (indeed, the flat was a star of the Historic Houses Trust of NSW’s recent ‘Homes in the sky: apartment living in Sydney’ exhibition at the Museum of Sydney), but there’s nothing wrong with that. No podcast, unfortunately.

Also last week, another impressive achievement in custodianship turned up in the Sydney Morning Herald’s ‘Essential’ supplement in the form of a two-page spread on the Boyd Baker House at Bacchus Marsh in Victoria. In fact, this property is something of a complex, featuring two homes designed by Robin Boyd and a library by Roy Grounds. The Baker family had maintained the buildings in original condition, and the new owner clearly values his purchase and is happy to share its delights with the public. The houses are open to visitors—see the website for more information.

‘Essential’ delivered the goods again this week with an article on Ken Woolley’s new designs for the reborn Pettit and Sevitt brand. At this stage just the New Lowline is available—an update of the classic single level format, now featuring a fourth bedroom and a garage, with various layout options available—but the architect is working on a New Split-Level design as well. He comments that the success of the project will depend on the availability of new land

ideally, small releases that won’t attract big developers

and also sees a suitable opportunity in knock-down properties in older suburbs.

There’s an example of a first-era Lowline on the market in Canberra at the moment: 9 Crossley Close, Melba.