Nothing divides opinion more than the shape and style of some modern buildings, and Liverpool and the wider region is no exception.
The area is blessed with so many incredible feats of architecture - from Grade I listed treasures to modern marvels. But for every Liverpool Cathedral and St George's Hall, there are many others that fiercely divide opinion as to their architectural merits.
Of course, beauty or ugliness is very much in the eye of the beholder. But there are some buildings that seem to pop up time and again when "eyesore buildings" are the topic. What might be an "eyesore" to one person will undoubtedly be another person's favourite building in the entire city.
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Many of these bold buildings draw attention thanks to their sheer size or prominent location, making them hard to ignore. Here, in no particular order, we take a look at the buildings which we all seem to "love to hate."
The Capital Building
The Capital Building in Old Hall Street (popularly known as "the sandcastle") has been part of the Liverpool skyline for over 45 years and its copious office space is home to insurance giant RSA, among many others.
Signature Living 'Fit Club'
Once this Old Hall Street building blighted the area with its permanently unfinished state. But it briefly opened for business before the pandemic closed it down again, with multiple parts of the Signature Living business collapsing into administration. It currently remains empty.
Museum of Liverpool
This flagship building on the waterfront was plagued by design problems which were only sorted out many years after it first opened to the public in 2011. Echo and the Bunnymen singer Ian McCulloch once told the ECHO: "I can’t stand it – it looks ridiculous, like some air-conditioning chute." Other comparisons have included an indoor ski centre.
St Johns shopping centre
The 540,000 sq ft city centre property is Liverpool's largest covered shopping centre and home to over 100 tenants.
But its most noticeable feature is St John's Beacon - or Radio City Tower - a structure now synonymous with Liverpool and visible for miles around. Liverpool-born comedian Alexei Sayle once called called it "a shoddy, poor, provincial version of London’s Telecom Tower."
Liverpool Crown Court
One of the busiest and most heavily-used buildings in the city centre, its design was apparently based on the medieval castle that once stood on or near the spot and gives its name to Castle Street. If the aim was to make the court building look forbidding, then the architects certainly succeeded.
The former HSBC (now a restaurant)
This distinctive building on the corner of Dale Street/Castle Street is in fact Grade II listed. Described as "a bit of the Swinging Sixties in the heart of Victorian Liverpool", there is no doubt it provides a strong contrast to the grand, ornate buildings in the immediate vicinity.
The inside was revamped by celebrity chef Gino D'Acampo in the summer of 2017 for his Liverpool restaurant, which closed at the start of the year to be replaced by new Italian "Riva Blu." The exterior remains something of a talking point.
The multi storey car park at Princes Dock
Multi storey car parks are rarely, if ever, aesthetically pleasing - but this concrete monolith takes it to another level for some.
Merseytravel HQ on the Strand
The prominent site forms one of three granite buildings at Mann Island. The transport authority moved there from its Grade II-listed building in Hatton Garden. It is also the base for the Liverpool Metro Mayor.
Mann Island apartments
Another element of the Mann Island development. Many are unhappy with the way they partially obscure the view of the world-famous "Three Graces" when approaching from the south of the city.
The Malmaison hotel
A radical design, its intimidating appearance is not universally popular.
Clayton Square
A major overhaul of the shopping arcade has still left it short of fans
The Royal Liverpool hospital
The new Royal has been mired in delays and controversies for years - in the meantime, patients are still having to use this increasingly unfit-for-purpose facility.
One Park West
This prominent apartment block on The Strand was awarded the dubious honour of a Carbuncle Cup, an annual award dished out to Britain's ugliest building by design experts for architect's website Building Design.
Mersey Ferries terminal
Another winner of the Carbuncle Cup, it was branded "a shining example of bad architecture and bad planning" when it won in 2009.
Merseyside police HQ
This 1970s brutalist monstrosity stands out like a sore thumb amongst the newer, shinier buildings that surround it. Now that police have moved out to their new £48m HQ overlooking Scotland Road, its long-term future is unclear.
Old magistrates court building
The Grade II-listed former magistrates' court building was boarded up and has become increasingly dilapidated since the service moved to the Crown Court complex in Derby Square in 2015. Various plans have been put forward to find a new use for the former court building in Dale Street. - first as a boutique hotel, and most recently a student complex.
And finally, three from over the water in Wirral....
Asda in Birkenhead
Its prison-like facade does nothing to gladden the heart when approaching Birkenhead from the Exmouth Street/Claughton Road junction.
St Catherine's Health Centre, Birkenhead
Once a beautiful old Victorian building with a rich history, the old hospital was torn down and replaced by a multi-coloured modernist structure.
The Cliff, New Brighton
These two high-rise blocks of flats in New Brighton stand in the ground of the former Cliff Villa. Once again, it's a case of stunning views from the inside, but a drab 1960s exterior for those looking on from the outside.
Which buildings are your pet hates? Email alan.weston@reachplc.com
