The 8 European buildings named among the world's most beautiful
To showcase the most show-stopping pieces of architecture and design on the planet, Time Out has just produced a list of the world's most beautiful buildings. Our 24-strong list celebrates beautiful buildings the world over, while exploring the moving inspiration behind them and the mind-boggling engineering that made constructing them possible.
Claiming first place was the Taj Mahal, which was built as a mausoleum for Mumtaz Mahal, the late wife of Emperor Shah Jahan and took 22 years to construct (talk about grand gestures, eh?).
However, eight buildings from all over Europe were included in our ranking. The first European entry went to Hallgrímskirkja, a modernist and expressionist Evangelical-Lutheran church in Iceland, which claimed second place on the worldwide list.
While its appearance is rocket-like, designer Guðjón Samúelsson took inspiration from Iceland's moody, rugged landscape, with the sloping edges to the church's façade mimicking cooled lava, and its white concrete finishing nodding to the snow-capped peaks behind Reykjavik.
At number 10 is The Twist in Norway, a remarkably striking feat of engineering where a 90-degree-rotated bridge doubles as an art gallery, right in the heart of Kistefos Sculpture Park. Maggie's Centre in the UK comes in at number 19 – an innovatively designed space full of nods to nature, which was designed for cancer patients.
The oldest entry for Europe is Rome 's legendary Pantheon, which dates back to 118-128 AD and features the largest unreinforced concrete dome on the planet. But it's not just the engineering that makes this facet so impressive. Every year on April 21, the 'oculus' of the Pantheon (that's the hole in its summit) casts light on a grill above the entrance and illuminates the entire courtyard. Pretty cool, right?
These are the most beautiful buildings in Europe, according to Time Out
Hallgrímskirkja, Iceland
Fondation Louis Vuitton, France
Trinity College Library, Ireland
The Twist, Norway
Sagrada Familia, Spain
Pantheon, Italy
Palmenhaus at Schonbrunn Palace, Austria
Maggie's Centre, St James's Hospital, UK
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Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Inside the Lionesses' jubilant Euro 2025 victory parade: How Sarina Wiegman let her mask slip, Chloe Kelly's iconic f-bomb, and Leah Williamson's touching message
'In Sarina We Trust,' the placards proclaimed, bobbing above the crowd as tens of thousands flooded down the Mall, inching ever closer to Buckingham Palace. Some had travelled from as far as Durham and as wide as Bristol, all for a glimpse of their heroes – and, of course, the Dutch manager who has delivered something once unimaginable: unflinching, unparalleled success to this country. Wiegman, understated as ever, had to be coaxed to the microphone to address the sea of flag-waving, jubilant faces, and asked to reflect on the night her side rallied one final time to clinch a second European crown in three years. 'Chaos,' she summarised, before delivering the most Wiegman of lines: 'We always had a plan and the players were trying to execute that on the pitch. We kept our hope and belief. We just showed up when it was really necessary and urgent.' Straight to the point. Always reluctant to embellish. Never one to claim individual credit, never one to seek the spotlight. And then the mask slipped – in the most unexpected of ways. The announcement that her favourite singer, Afrobeats star Burna Boy, would be joining her on stage. She gasped, a hand flying to her forehead. 'No way,' she cried, before launching into a spontaneous jig to For My Hand, arm-in-arm with the Nigerian artist, hips swaying as her players erupted in laughter behind her. They, too, were caught off guard by this rare lapse in composure – a glimpse of their manager revelling, at last, in the praise so rightfully hers. 'Her face when they brought Burna Boy out was a picture. None of us could believe it, to be honest,' Esme Morgan told the BBC after the celebrations. The anthem of the tournament had become Wiegman's too. The 1950s classic by The Champs had been joyfully reworked – 'Sarina!' replacing 'Tequila!' – and was roared once more by the faithful gathered below. Leah Williamson summed it up: 'She's an amazing woman. She stands by us on and off the pitch. She supports us in whichever way we need – and then she's ruthless. If she tells me to jump, I say how high.' Seventeen-year-old fan April Caswell from Hertfordshire reflected with striking eloquence: 'She's carried the team so well. To get them to the end and win was absolutely amazing. It's so inspiring – the way she's helped bring up these women who are representing their country. That's inspiring a lot of girls to go after their dreams.' Over the past few weeks, England have felt the love of this crowd in fleeting moments. When they stepped out of their hotels for brief walks around the city. When they opened social media and saw the flood of messages from home. When they were stopped on Zurich's trams for selfies. When press conferences were interrupted by FaceTimes from family – as happened with Hannah Hampton, after her standout performance in the win over Sweden. And, of course, when they stepped onto the pitch and heard the roar. Here, that love surged towards them with force and fervour from every corner of the country. Fans lined the streets in red and white, chanting their names – and they didn't stop. Some had set off as early as three in the morning, heading for the tree-lined, red-tarmac stretch of London's most iconic ceremonial route before dawn had broken. As the hours passed, replays of the Lionesses' road to glory lit up the big screens. There were gasps as the crowd relived the heartbreak of the opening defeat to France, but the loudest cheer of all was saved for Chloe Kelly's decisive penalty. Some cracked open beers with their Monday breakfasts. A few bold fans even clambered onto the media platform to get a better view, prompting gentle intervention from the police. But no one could have asked for more when it came to the speech delivered by Leah Williamson after sobbing her way down the Mall atop the open-top bus. 'This is probably one of the best things we have ever been a part of, so thank you for coming out,' the England captain told the crowd. 'There are lots of ways to win a football match and we repeatedly did it the hard way, but I think you can see how much we care about playing for England, how much we love it. '2022 was a fairytale, but this feels really hard-earned, and we are very proud of ourselves. So thank you – and we hope you are (proud of us), too. 'My message is: everything we do, obviously we do it for us and our team, but we do it for the country and we do it for young girls. This job never existed 30, 40 years ago and we are making history every single step. Thank you so much for being with us. Stay with us – this story is not done yet.' The Mall was filled with thousands of excited England fans who filled up all available space to watch the presentation The Lionesses cruised along The Mall to celebrate their second European title on the trot Woman-of-the-hour Chloe Kelly put it more succinctly – and with no less impact – declaring, 'It's so f**** special!' The outburst drew titters from the crowd and nervous laughter from Alex Scott, who swiftly apologised for the language, as Kelly later did on social media. The occasion felt quintessentially British in the 21st century: a flamboyant clash of tradition and modernity. It began with bagpipes, pomp and ceremony. The backdrop – Buckingham Palace and the Queen Victoria Memorial – was nothing short of majestic. There was a dash of the vintage – Heather Small's Proud sent Ella Toone and Alessia Russo into a frenzy. And then came the flavour of the new: DJs, Alex Scott, visor sunglasses – and, crucially, women at the forefront of celebration for their sporting achievement. One of the day's quiet tragedies was the absence of Jess Carter, who had flown back to the United States to play for her club, Gotham FC, in the NWSL. After all she endured this tournament – from the racist abuse that forced her off social media to her rock-solid, triumphant display against Spain – she deserved this moment more than most. But her decision to return to club duty before taking her bow was a testament to her character. Here's hoping she heard the loudest roar when her name was announced at Basel's St Jakob-Park – a stadium that will now carry the memory of this special group of players for many years to come.
North Wales Chronicle
an hour ago
- North Wales Chronicle
European champions England given a hero's welcome outside Buckingham Palace
Less than 48 hours on from the nerve-shredding penalty shootout in Basel that saw Sarina Wiegman's side retain their European crown, throngs of supporters took over the approach to Buckingham Palace as the team paraded the trophy along the famous route from an open-top bus and revelled in an achievement unique in English football. For the first time since England teams began competing at major international tournaments in 1950, a side bearing the three lions returned home victorious as Chloe Kelly's winning kick capped a stunning fightback against the world champions, making Wiegman's players the first to win a tournament outside of England. Proud 🥹 — Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 29, 2025 It was a fitting intervention that, as the bus arrived from the Mall to a specially-erected stage in front of the palace at around 12:20, an overcast sky over London parted for the first time and bathed the European champions in sunshine. Some supporters had waited for 12 hours for captain Leah Williamson and her team. The earliest devotees reportedly set up camp just after midnight in anticipation of the players' arrival on the Mall just past noon, to be joined by fans who had travelled from all over the country and who represented a cross-section of ages and backgrounds. A carnival atmosphere had been heightened at around 11am when footage was shown on a big screen of England's remarkable route through the tournament. From the disappointment of the loss to France with which they began the defence of their title, to the escapology acts of the knockout stages that saw them fight back from the brink of elimination against Sweden and Italy. The England supporters' band – the soundtrack to so many tournament disappointments throughout decades of England teams returning home empty-handed – were in attendance, underscoring the significance to English football of the Lionesses' back-to-back tournament triumphs. Later, the Central Band of the Royal Air Force took over to serenade the players onto stage with a rendition of 'Sweet Caroline'. Addressing the crowd, a visibly emotional Williamson said: 'Special people, we love each other, we've got each other's back on and off the pitch. 'Everything we do, we do for us and the team but we do it for the country and young girls. This job never existed thirty years ago. This story's not done yet.' The duo you didn't know you needed 😁😁 — Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 29, 2025 Wiegman, who was coaxed into dancing by an on-stage appearance from Afrobeat star Burna Boy, said: 'We just kept hope and belief and (the players) showed up when it was really necessary and urgent. 'There's a huge talent pool in this team. The bonding in this team in this tournament, that made the difference. Everyone was willing to step up and support each other.' Kelly, whose goal in the final moment of extra-time put England through against Italy – before hitting the winning penalty in the final – said: 'Pressure? What pressure? It feels so good to stand side by side with these girls. Thank you to everyone who got out to support us. It's so f*****g special.' Goalkeeper and penalty hero Hannah Hampton said: 'Don't let people tell you what you can and can't do. If it makes you happy go and follow that smile.' Young player of the tournament Michelle Agyemang, whose equalising goals in the quarter-final and semi-final, said: 'It's still surreal. It doesn't even seem real.' The biggest cheer of the day was reserved for when Williamson lifted the European Championship trophy high as Buckingham Palace disappeared behind plumes of red and white smoke and 'Sweet Caroline' echoed again over London.
Metro
2 hours ago
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The majority of Brits believe this 'revolting' habit is perfectly fine
Last week, a man whose naked body was inadvertently exposed to the world on Google Street View was awarded £9,000 in compensation after judges ruled his privacy was invaded. As he was relaxing au naturel in his garden, the passing car papped him over the fence – and his backside was subsequently uploaded online for billions of people to see. Despite the final ruling in his favour, the man was initially told off for 'walking around in inappropriate conditions.' But now, a new study exploring the UK's attitude to nudity reveals that three quarters (73%) of the country are firmly on his side, sharing the belief that your birthday suit is perfectly acceptable garden attire. According to YouGov's research, 39% of the British public claim they're open to being publicly naked in some form or another, while almost a quarter (23%) believe clothing is completely optional in the countryside. These findings may come as a shock, as Brits are famously more prudish than our European counterparts when it comes to nudity – whereas many of us shy away from stripping down in the changing rooms, the Netherlands has more than 80 nudist beaches, while baring all is actually mandatory in a number of public saunas throughout Belgium and Germany. What's the score on UK rules, though? British Naturism notes that according to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, it's perfectly legal to sunbathe starkers in your own garden, as long as you're not deliberately doing it to cause 'alarm and distress.' One of the organisation's leading mantras is that 'being naked is good for you,' citing numerous benefits to a clothes-free existence, including improved mental, emotional and physical health, as well as improving body image issues. 'Being naked in the company of others helps people's perception of what constitutes a healthy body – it's okay to have wobbly bits and be different from most 'celebrity' bodies,' its website reads. We took it upon ourselves to ask Metro readers: is it ever okay to get nude in your own back garden? Referring to her enclosed garden setup, Becky Irving joked: 'You'd have to go up onto your roof and look in to see, so if the neighbours go to all that hassle and get the fright of their life seeing me in the nip, that's their own fault.' Jorge Florez claimed 'nudity is harmless,' and that 'everybody should be able to be naked wherever they want to,' a sentiment echoed by Chris T Wilkinson who wrote: 'We are not born with clothes on.' Which, we guess, is technically true.' 'My garden, my rules, it's as simple as that,' James Hyde commented, adding: 'If I want to prance around naked in my garden I will.' Fair enough. More Trending Charlotte Simon argued if people go snooping over fences and 'get offended,' then 'that's their problem,' but Roni Smith said that while she would sit in the back garden with just her bra on, she 'wouldn't go all out.' Not everyone felt the same though, including Cameron Betty who quipped: 'It's all well and good till you're in the community garden of a block of 100 flats.' 'I don't like looking at my own body, so I certainly don't want to see anyone else's,' Elizabeth Trudgill added, while Jan Delaney Syme said they didn't want to see their 'revolting old neighbour's bits'. 'Some parents don't want their children introduced to their neighbour's genitals,' they wrote. 'If I lived next to an exhibitionist, they'd be getting a cold, sharp blast from the hosepipe.' Do you have a story to share? Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@ MORE: I spoke to a bra expert to find the best swimsuits for bigger busts MORE: 'I've tried jabs and pills to lose weight – but my latest attempt is the most extreme' MORE: Vogue's new advert proves the dystopian future is already here Your free newsletter guide to the best London has on offer, from drinks deals to restaurant reviews.
