Terry Farrell, who has died aged 87, fits slightly awkwardly into the history of late 20th century British architecture. His early career was closely entwined with that of Nicholas Grimshaw, with whom he was in partnership from the mid-1960s until 1980. The Farrell/Grimshaw practice was known and highly regarded for its high-tech, systematised approach to design and construction. Grimshaw was fascinated by boats and many of their projects were replete with masts and other marine allusions.

It became clear during this period that Farrell and Grimshaw’s interests were diverging, at a time when modernism was, with the exception of high tech, seemingly increasingly adrift. Postmodernism, especially after the famous 1980 Venice Architectural Biennale, was on the rise.

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