70s House: A bold homage to the most daring decade in design

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I just think that when all the cornicing and arches and aesthetic stuff went away the best of society went with it,” he explains, adding that he takes his behavioural lead from Victorian etiquette books.

home into a spectacular tribute to the Mum transforms her home into a spectacular tribute to the

Surrounded by mainly Georgian and Victorian furniture all my life, by the age of 13 I guess I rebelled somewhat, fascinated by anything from the art deco period of the 20s and 30s, to post war atomic design, through the post-modernist 60s and 70s. Over the past 30 odd years I bought and sold to enhance my own collections, and to upgrade the furniture in our home.

'KITSCH MAGPIE'

I really identify with strong female characters, they were part of my life growing up in the late 70’s and during the 80’s, bought into your front room several times a week via soap operas and sit coms, this is why you’ll see me reference them repeatedly in my work. I’d love to work with David Downton and reproduce the series of images he did for the female protagonists in Mad Men, which were illustrated in the style of Bob Peak, a genuine Madison Ave Man. I guess if pushed for an actual person I would love to do the Queen, resplendent in her finery, there’s definitely something uber-kitsch about her and the corgis! Nostalgia has a number of psychological functions,” explains Tim Wildschut, a professor of psychology at the University of Southampton who studies personal nostalgia. “It gives meaning and connectedness, and makes sense of our own identity through time as well as offering us escape from the troubles of the present.” Nostalgia, he says, is exerting a particularly powerful pull now, in a moment of national crisis that calls to mind the Second World War years, which are popularly presented as the embodiment of gumption and community spirit. I do love anything old, from art deco onwards, but there's something about the 70s that's so evocative to me. Our research shows that loneliness and social isolation trigger nostalgia. Nostalgia, in turn, increases perceived social connectedness and support. Viewed in this way, nostalgia offsets the negative effects of loneliness.” Living history offers a dual pay-off, forming our self-hood as it swaddles us in the psychological comfort blanket of an imagined past. Britons have long enjoyed vintage dress-up: 50s teddy boys based their style on Edwardian street gangs; men born long after D-Day still gather to reenact the battles of both world wars. What’s new are people who, like Koropisz, commit to living their lives as if the intervening 40, 50 or 130 years never happened – as well as the communities that have grown around vintage lifestyles. The latter include online interest groups, such as the #tradwife movement; weekends themed for everything from 50s dancing to the lifestyle of the world wars and subsequent years (the War and Peace Revival attracted 50,000 attendees for its fourth outing in 2019); and the grand Victorian balls that are the highlight of Koropisz’s year.

1970s interiors are back in style–here are the 10 key

In the unlikely event of winning the lottery, I’d love to be in a position where I could afford to keep this house for our son and buy a more modernist/1970s home to restore to its former glory. This house has such a lot of memories for us, as Steve has owned it for nearly 20 years. I would be very content if this was to be our forever home as the area is lovely.’ (image credit: Estelle Bilson)

FROM TRETCHKOFF TO THE ROVER’S RETURN... ICONS OF BRITISH TV SUCH AS PAT BUTCHER, BET LYNCH, AND HILDA OGDEN HAVE GRACED YOUR SOFT FURNISHINGS. WHO WOULD BE YOUR DREAM CHARACTER TO IMMORTALISE IN VELVET? Part interiors guide, part manual for living, this loud-and-proud book will bring not only 70s colour and kitsch to the modern day, but also the rebellious spirit, pure joy and freewheeling energy epitomised by the era. We do get children pointing and laughing’: Michael Koropisz in his bedroom at his parents’ house in Greater Manchester. Photograph: Alex Telfer/The Observer This isn’t the boldest house to have featured here architecturally. But it’s a lesson on what you can do with a house, regardless of its past. Forget about the magazines and makeover shows, we can all create an exciting interior and a space that gets talked about if we simply use our imagination and follow our own path. (image credit: Estelle Bilson)