What is not in doubt is that this is a very popular winner. A straw poll of the public gives it a huge approval rating. It communicates very directly. It is also intensively used by people who come some distance to see it and walk it. So this year the Stirling jury succumbed to populism, so leaving some very considered but perhaps less photogenic pieces of architecture out in the cold.

But it is undoubtedly very good. Photogenic? I'll say. Here are some new shots I took of the bridge on the morning after the Stirling Prize. Make up your own mind. And if you want, refer to the article I wrote when the bridge first opened:

http://www.hughpearman.com/articles2/tyne.html