George Clarke
George became famous after presenting several TV shows including Channel 4’s ‘The Restoration Man’ and ‘George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces’.
Since graduating from his BA Architecture at Newcastle University, George has become a fully qualified architect (completing his MArch at The Bartlett), creative director of George Clarke + Partners, and a founder of TV production company Amazing Productions.
George Clarke was born in Washington, Tyne and Wear, in 1974. At the age of 16 he spent two and a half years working for a local architect in his home town. After developing a strong portfolio and completing a BTEC in Building and Construction at Wearside College, George applied to study BA Architecture at Newcastle University.
Having come from a practical background, George felt slightly out of touch with the academic side of the course. Undeterred, he went on to win the year prize for architecture in his second and third years, and graduated with a first class degree. ‘My time at Newcastle was the best three years I’ve ever had,’ he says, ‘I had some amazing lecturers, like Harry Charrington, my second-year tutor, who really inspired and motivated me.’
After graduating, George landed a job at Faulkner Browns in Newcastle, before going on to work for fellow Newcastle Graduate Sir Terry Farrell in London, and spending time at the Farrell office in Hong Kong. He completed his training at the renowned Bartlett School of Architecture at UCL. In 1998, George formed his own company, clarke:desai. He left in 2011 to set up George Clarke + Partners. He was a visiting lecturer at Newcastle University from 2001-2003, and is currently a visiting lecturer at Nottingham University.
George’s TV career came about through a happy accident, when he approached a literary agent after being asked to write a book about architecture. The agency also represented television presenters, and George was asked to screen test for a new Channel 5 show, Build a New Life in the Country. He was offered the job, and went on to present A Dream Home Abroad for Channel 5. In 2008, George moved to Channel 4, where he has presented The Restoration Man, George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces and 2015’s Amazing Spaces Shed of the Year. All these shows showcase and highlight George’s passion for the subject he studied at degree level.
In 2014, George became the youngest person ever to be awarded honorary membership of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). George has since been awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the University of Sunderland (2011), an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Leeds Beckett University (July 2015), Honorary Doctorate of Technology from the University of Wolverhampton (September 2015) and an Honorary Doctorate from Northumbria University (December 2015).
George is passionate about using his position and access to help make a difference. He is a Prince’s Regeneration Trust ambassador, a patron of the design and architecture charity The Civic Trust and first Ambassador for housing and homelessness charity Shelter. George also works with Maggie’s the cancer charity and with Sunderland Association Football Club on its Beacon of Light and Foundation of Light projects.