Light entertainment feels the squeeze

There’s a perfect storm brewing that could leave many producers of light-entertainment shows no option other than to relocate, albeit temporarily, far outside the M25.

The likely blitzing of Fountain Studios for property development only compounds the lack of suitable large studio space for TV in and around the capital.

“The situation is a function of the property industry, not the TV industry,” says Fountain managing director Mariana Spater. “We haven’t failed, but we cannot compete with land prices.”

Fountain owner Avesco Group sold the Wembley-based stalwart to developer Quintain for £16m earlier this month. Although the deal stipulates that Fountain can lease back the premises for up to five years, this can be terminated at six months’ notice, effectively paving the way for closure.

If rumours of ITV’s sale of its South Bank building (formerly The London Studios) prove to be well-founded, there will be a major production reshuffle on the cards.

“Penthouse apartments on the river are going for £80m a shot and any studio would have to get in an awful lot of shows to get anywhere near that kind of revenue,” Spater adds ruefully.

The squeeze will have a particular impact on large-scale shows such as The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, the live finals of which have long been shot at Fountain. With audience-hosting spectaculars like these trending upwards in terms of room, demand for laser-levelled stages of a minimum 12,000 sq ft is at a premium.

Despite this, BBC Studios & Post Production (S&PP) believes that by the end of 2017, broadcasters will be able to call on more studio space – even with Fountain out of the picture.

“We think there will be a net increase,” says commercial manager Meryl McLaren. “There is an element of panic from those worried about short-term homes for shows, but over the next two to three years, we don’t think there will be a major shortage.”

Long-term vision

Her optimism is based on the revamped TV Centre (part of a £1bn mixed-use overhaul of the site), due to open for business in April 2017, with three studios (3,500 sq ft, 8,000 sq ft and 10,250 sq ft), albeit reduced from TVC’s previous eight.

After consulting with clients, BBC S&PP plans to continue to lease assets from Elstree too. Strictly Come Dancing, for example, is likely to remain in situ at George Lucas 2 (also home to The Voice UK and A League Of Their Own), while the BBC’s presence will be maintained at one or more of Elstree’s 11,800 sq ft Studio D (home to EastEnders and ITV Studios’ It’s Not Rocket Science), or 7,500 sq ft stages 8 or 9. “Studio D is perfect for Fountain-sized studio shows,” says McLaren.

Both Elstree and BBC S&PP are pitching for business (for the likes of Hungry Bear’s Play To The Whistle), should they be forced from Wembley.

“We are always talking to clients [like Syco],” says Elstree managing director Roger Morris, noting that George Lucas 2 “is bigger by 3,000 sq ft than Fountain” – though overcoming the scheduling clash with Strictly may rule out The X Factor.

Pinewood is equally capable of stepping in. Its stages already accommodate BBC1’s The Voice UK, Dave’s Red Dwarf and Channel 4’s Four Rooms. From June, another five sound stages will open, the largest at 40,000 sq ft, though lacking TX and gallery facilities.

Shiny-floor requests

A trio of new studios is due to open this year at Leavesden, but that hasn’t stopped enquiries about availability being made at other complexes.

“We are getting a lot of requests from shiny-floor shows,” reveals Charlie Fremantle, managing director of Hayes’ West London Film Studios. “We’ve looked at the possibility of converting a stage into one suitable for live entertainment, but the return on investment is tricky to judge and it’s not something we plan to do at the moment. That said, we’re keen to get other types of work in here and if a light-entertainment show approached us, we would jump at the chance.”

Daybreak Productions’ feature-length drama Churchill’s Secret recently shot at Hayes (see Behind the Scenes, page 22), and ITV eight-parter The Halcyon has just moved in. “More and more productions are asking for 15,000 sq ft or more of space – which we can cater for with stages 5 and 6 (7,100 sq ft and 9,400 sq ft respectively) next to each other,” Fremantle says.

Wimbledon Film and TV Studios is also open for dry hire of 7,500 and 8,000 sq ft spaces, with a street set to boot. Suitable for sitcom, indie features and drama, the site is not, however, equipped for audience shows.

“Although there is a feeling that studio space is hard to come by, we are not fully booked and I doubt anyone else is either,” says Sarah Eccles of The Collective, which manages the studios on behalf of owner Marjan TV.

As TV producers look to fill up Pinewood and Elstree, 3 Mills Studios anticipates a domino effect as more drama – like NBC’s The Royals – comes its way.

“We considered investing in a TV stage, but the volume of TV drama and feature work makes that more viable for us,” says studio head Tom Avison. “We are positioning ourselves in terms of high-end TV and expect a knock-on in requests from producers unable to be accommodated at Pinewood.”

Further afield, Bristol-based The Bottle Yard’s eight stages are also fit for drama rather than the shiny-floor market. Although the studio has just added 5,000 sq ft of green screen, site director Fiona Francombe doesn’t envisage further expansion. “We wouldn’t want to grow any more; we want to be confident of maintaining our level of service,” she says.

With Poldark series two just wrapped and the Deal Or No Deal set under dust sheets for the mid-term, the studio is hopeful of recommissions for Sky 1 sitcom Trollied and Disney-ABC’s Galavant.

In the longer term, more dedicated TV space is coming on stream. By April 2018, Hammersmith’s Riverside Studios, closed since 2014, will be back in action with three stages, the largest of which is 6,500 sq ft with a gallery suite.

Morris says Elstree is planning “the ultimate designer studio”, with gallery, transmission capability, integral dressing rooms and wardrobe, and a “fantastic” lighting grid. The 21,000 sq ft stage is under construction until 2017.

Hertsmere Borough Council stepped in to save Elstree from redevelopment 20 years ago. But would the council feel forced to capitalise on land prices by selling it for redevelopment now?

“We have to be able to earn money to pay our way, but we deliver great to pay our way, but we deliver great revenue for Hertsmere and have revenue for Hertsmere and have almost trebled our contribution since almost trebled our contribution since 2008,” says Morris. “Our expansion is part of a long-term strategy we have agreed with them.”

Pinewood has also put TV at the core of its £200m expansion but with shareholders, notably MediaCityUK owner Peel Group, considering a sale, there must be some question over its future. Pinewood calls the process a “strategic review” and points out that unique planning permissions mean the site can only be used for film and TV.

Efficiency drive

One canny solution to the lack of studio space is simply to make more efficient use of stages. After all, when a space is empty, it is not generating income. The BBC places great store on its ability to double the number of shows it shoots per week at Elstree, and plans to ramp that up to seven a week thanks to new infrastructure it is currently specifying for TVC.

McLaren concludes: “As long as productions are flexible in terms of dates, I can’t see anybody being without a home.”