I went to an event organised by the Architecture Programme of the RA called Everyday Modernism: about the obvious gap which has opened up between the current romanticisation and idealisation of the small number of icons of modernism – the Barbican, Park Hill in Sheffield and Robin Hood Gardens – all seen through the eyes of Ladybird books; and the realities of conditions of social living during the period – the tendency towards conservatism in room use, the customisation of interiors, the need to use inherited furniture, and the passion for DIY; all of which undermine the images of idealised modernism which survive in architectural photographs of the period.