Mellow yellow – how a feelgood buttery brick revived a decaying 1960s estate

A revolutionary, no-nonsense cooked clod of clay has given South Kilburn a new lease of life. But can the rest of the rundown estate live up to its refreshed streetscape?If 1960s housing was known for concrete panels, the 1980s for cartoonish pediments, and the 2000s for tacky (sometimes fatal) clip-on cladding, the current epoch will be remembered for bricks. But not just any old brick. It is a yellowish, biscuity brick, whose particular patina falls somewhere between a digestive and a Hobnob.