The British might have been slow to discover the joys of Italian cuisine, but in the 1800s they were certainly quick to adopt elements of Italian architecture.
The Italian 'boot' was a crucial destination for architects and culture vultures doing 'the grand tour'. And they liked what they saw, so much so that they took it home.
'The English never really had confidence about their own architecture,' says critic and author Philip Drew. 'So they brought it back in their luggage on their continental tours.'
One such Briton was celebrated architect John Nash, who sketched the 16th-century Italian Renaissance buildings he visited. In Shropshire, Nash designed England's first example of an Italianate villa: the modest country house known as Cronkhill. Soon after, Charles Barry took the Italianate style further.
Barry's early Italianate designs include the Royal Institute of Manchester (1824) and the Reform Club in London (1841). The latter is still regarded as Britain's greatest Italianate building and was largely influenced by Barry's visit to Rome's Farnese Palace.
Barry's work is best known today because of a television series. The stately home where the drama Downton Abbey is set is actually Highclere Castle, Hampshire. In 1842 Barry redesigned it, adding Italianate elements, such as the classic towers.
Barry also built London's Houses of Parliament. Although largely Gothic, the structure still has Italianate motifs.