F r e q u e n t l y   A s k e d Q u e s t i o n s

* What is a folly?

Put simply, Follies are buildings that were erected for no real purpose, sometimes on a whim. Referred to as "Rogue Architecture", The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as: ' FOLLY. A name given to any costly structure considered to have shown folly in the builder.' I personally prefer the phrase:

'a very misunderstood and often overlooked building', as no-one really can understand them.

* What kind of buildings are follies?

Follies fall into many categories, but generally they can be an Eye catcher, often as a fake or 'Sham' ruin built perhaps on top of a hill or in the middle of a field, intended to 'catch the eye' of the beholder.

Columns. Often built as a monument or memorial to a particular person in History.

Obelisks and Pillars. Tapering needles of stone ranging in size from the short to the very tall.

Pyramids. Mostly 3 or 4 sided, were often built as unusual mausoleums, but not always.

Screens. Erected to obscure the view of another building or buildings.

Temples of different styles. These include the square Classic, -Greek or Roman-,Gothic style, and Round, -Rotunda or Rotundo-, either of an open style or a closed style with a room inside. All supported by columns of either corinthian, doric or ionic.

Towers. Many different styles of folly towers were built in all kinds of shapes and sizes. Be they hexagonal, multi-sided, octagonal, round, square, or triangular. Sometimes a mixture of all..

* When were follies built and why?

Most follies were built all over the British Isles between the 17th and 19th century, often by wealthy landowners. They were rarely built by the poor. Some were built just on a whim, some to make us laugh. Some just leave the beholder totally baffled to why a seemingly useless building would be erected somewhere completely remote. In the folly building hay days of the 18th century, building follies was a fashion. No great estate's grounds was considered to be complete if it did not contain at least one quirky building such as a tower or a temple. However, follies are still being constructed today. Perhaps the most expensive being the Millennium Dome in London. The most recent, -to my knowledge- 'Spinnaker Tower' built on Portsmouth's seafront in Hampshire, as a prospect tower. It is estimated there are over 1600 folly sites around Britain.

* Will they last?

Nearly all of Britain's follies are privately owned, listed, and are looked after. However many others are falling into decay and will eventually collapse and be lost forever. The National Trust for instance, owns many follies on the bigger country estates and strives to preserve them. They are a part of our heritage, that is why in 1988 the Folly Fellowship was formed. A registered charity and society open to all, dedicated to preserving the follies of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

* Can they be visited?

Many follies are on private ground and cannot in general, be visited by the public unless special permission is granted by the landowner. Although they can often be seen from nearby roads. Estate's containing classic follies, such as Stourhead in Wiltshire and Stowe in Buckinghamshire are owned by the National Trust and can be visited by the public.

About Me

* Who is this person interested in follies?

'My name is Carl Curtis, I was born in West Sussex in 1968. I moved to Hampshire with my partner to Westbourne near Havant, Hampshire in 2002. Looking out from our bedroom window one day I could make out a strange looking building hiding in trees on the horizon..

I had to satisfy my curiosity, and one day got in my car and headed towards it. Drawing closer I could see it was a very large ruined stone tower with 3 side turrets. It was standing alone in a copse on top of a hill looking like something out of a horror film! Thinking this was very peculiar I consulted the Internet and found this web site. Phil had well documented this tower already. It was the very sinister Racton Tower. I had to know more. I visited it again and from then on I was hooked. I began to visit more follies in Sussex and Hampshire, sending my photographs to Phil to publish on this site.

In 2004 we moved from Westbourne to a farm cottage in Stockbridge Hampshire, where I am based.

In 2006 I learned some HTML and Phil passed this site over to me as he is no longer in a position to visit the folly sites himself due to ongoing family commitments.' Being situated in the south of England, it is difficult to obtain many photographs of the Follies of Scotland and Northern England. All of the ones that already appear on this site are from contributions. New photographs are always welcome, and are gratefully received. See contact page:

In 2007 I joined the Folly Fellowship. A charity dedicated to the conservation and preservation of these very "misunderstood" buildings.

I can be contacted via email. Please feel free to drop me a line. See contact page.

 

 

 

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