Sir Donald Insall: key obituary facts
Is Sir Donald Insall dead? Yes. Sir Donald Insall died on October 10, 2026, at age 100.
Cause of death: Sir Donald Insall's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Sir Donald Insall known for?
He was a British architect.
More about Sir Donald Insall
Born: 1 January 1926.
Gender: male.
Occupation: architect.
Nationality: United Kingdom.
Education: Bristol Grammar School.
Awards: Commander of the Order of the British Empire, Knight Bachelor.
Also known as: Sir Donald William Insall.
Sir Donald Insall, the British architect, conservationist and author, died October 10, 2026, aged 100.
Born in Bristol, he attended Bristol Grammar School and served in the Coldstream Guards during the Second World War. He qualified in architecture at the Royal West of England Academy School of Architecture, now part of the University of Bristol, and went on to study at the Royal Academy and the School of Planning.
His early professional work was with the London architects Phillimore and Jenkins. In 1957, Insall published The Care of Old Buildings, a report marking the 80th anniversary of William Morris’s founding of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. The following year, he established Donald Insall Associates, an architectural conservation practice; Peter Locke joined him shortly afterwards. Insall’s career brought together architectural training and practice with writing and the preservation of historic buildings. His report and the specialist firm he founded were distinct contributions to that work, and he was described as one of the leading conservation architects of his generation. Donald Insall Associates developed as an architectural and conservation consultancy, reflecting the combination of professional practice and conservation that defined his public role as an architect, conservationist and author.