‘Designers make existence a more positive experience’

H.R.H. Prince Philip tells Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud that his prize celebrates lateral thinking

The Prince Philip Designers Prize celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The UK’s longest-running annual design prize has recognised the very best in British design, from products to buildings, fashion to graphics, and rewarded those whose innovations have shaped our daily lives.

Portrait of H.R.H Prince Philip by Christine Donnier-Valentin

Fifty years after Charles Longman impressed the judges with his Prestcold Packaway refrigerator, designer and television presenter Kevin McCloud met with H.R.H. Prince Philip to discuss the origins of the award, the importance of design and the changes he has noticed over the years.

Kevin McCloud: Why did you start the prize in 1959?

H.R.H. Prince Philip: The Festival of Britain had showcased the new generation of design and I’d got to know people involved. Soon after, the [royal yacht] Britannia was built and we had to find designers. Hugh Casson was recommended and suddenly I was involved in what door handles and furniture to use. It brought home to me that people were designing these things.

After six years of war, design had gone from functional to Brutal. Casson had a talent in producing things that were not only functional, but also comfortable and pleasant to look at and live with.

So the award was given for elegant design?

The point was to try and get back to design plus functionalism plus something else. The Packaway refrigerator was competing against hideous ones: round, bulging and offensive. This was a clean design, an elegant solution, but also something which was better than the ordinary. It’s easy enough to do a functional design, but you’ve got to add something.

Over the past 50 years, have you seen any big changes in the design landscape?

Design has been enormously influenced by the development of new materials. And new techniques and technologies are being introduced faster than ever before.

Designs have changed dramatically, but through evolution. Many designers tend to look at what somebody else has done and then try and do the same thing. Only once in a while does somebody come out with something radically new. Then that changes the product range because one person has done something completely different.

Why do you think it’s important to celebrate design and designers?

If you pick out an individual, you give them a tremendous sense of confidence. As for design, it makes existence a more positive experience. Look at street furniture, for instance. Why should attractive things only be in the home?

Do you find designers a breed apart?

All original thinkers have got a quality you can recognise. All architects wear ties with horizontal stripes, for instance. Or no ties at all.

How do you think designers are best used, and how has this changed?

If you go back to the 18th or 19th centuries, all design advances were created by individual taste. Now, it’s a corporation’s decision. The chance of producing something exceptional is smaller because it’s the interaction between a patron and a designer that produces great things. The grand concepts are no longer a one-to-one relationship.

In the past, a lot was left to manufacturers, who don’t necessarily have good taste. Companies used to employ a designer, but it’s better to have a contract with somebody external. It gives the designer greater authority to argue their opinion.

Where do you think the areas of failure have been?

In Britain, we’ve got great craftsmen, but the emphasis has gone on to intellectual development. Giving people who are manually talented the opportunity to develop their talents has been pushed into second place. Politicians don’t seem to see that the craftsman is as valuable as the designer.

The corollary of craftsmanship is value. Does that deteriorate as we’re buying more throwaway items?

An awful lot of it isn’t fit for purpose but people put up with these ghastly things. Take televisions, for instance – it takes so long before you can find the on switch.

So much seems made for the convenience of the maker, but design is largely common sense. Lateral thinking is absolutely crucial.

Find out more about the Prince Philip Designers Prize and watch a video of Kevin McCloud interviewing H.R.H.

Winning ways

Highlights from 50 years of The Prince Philip Designers Prize 

1959
Charles Longman
The first recipient of the prize, Charles Longman, designed his innovative Packaway refrigerator for cramped kitchens. At £58 (about £500 today), it wasn’t cheap, but it was practical and elegant – and many Packaways are said to be still going strong 50 years on.

1962
Nicolas Sekers
Originally known for producing brocade fabrics for Givenchy, Cardin and Dior, Sekers’ eponymous fabrics firm moved into furnishing fabrics when brocade fell out of fashion. The company landed a Royal Warrant in 1967 and still makes high-quality domestic fabrics.

1976
Brian Blatchford
An inventive engineer in a family firm, Blatchford designed prosthetic limbs and introduced production processes so they could be quickly and cheaply put together from stock parts. The company continues to develop award-winning mobility products using new materials and technology.

1991
John Cundy
As chief design engineer for Rolls-Royce, Cundy’s ground-breaking work powers around 80% of all Boeing 757s. His RB211-535E4 engine set new standards for low noise, low emissions, reliability and fuel efficiency, often flying 20,000 miles before a maintenance stop.

1997
James Dyson
The inventor’s vision took 5,000 prototypes to realise, but the bagless DC01 (right) became a bestseller in the UK. Dyson is now the leading vacuum brand in the US.

2005
Derek Birdsall
Graphic designer Birdsall is famous for revolutionising publishers’ ideas about typography and illustration with Penguin in the 1960s and 1970s. Other career highlights include magazine art direction, a Monty Python book, RSA commemorative stamps and the C of E’s Common Worship.

2006
Thomas Heatherwick
Nicknamed the ‘British Leonardo’, Heatherwick is a master of architecture, art, structural engineering, sculpture and design. His inventive use of materials and gift for problem-solving has resulted in public works such as a bridge that curls up and the Materials House at the Science Museum.

Article first published in Design Council Magazine, Issue 7, Winter 2009

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