The Former Home Of The BBC Radiophonic Workshop Saved!
The BBC’s historic Maida Vale studios, which have hosted sessions by stars ranging from the Beatles to Adele, have been sold to a group led by Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.
Zimmer, who wrote the scores for films like The Lion King and Dune, has teamed up with Love Actually and Cats movie producers Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner.
The BBC said the complex would remain a “centre for pioneering music-making”.
It was valued at about £10m but the BBC did not disclose the purchase price.
Built in 1909 as Britain’s largest indoor roller skating rink, the north-west London building was bought by the BBC in 1933.
It is home to the BBC Symphony Orchestra and has hosted the world’s biggest rock and pop stars – from Led Zeppelin to Radiohead and Jay-Z to Little Mix.
It also played host to John Peel’s famous Radio 1 sessions and the BBC’s innovative Radiophonic Workshop, famed for its realisation of the Doctor Who theme tune.
The corporation is planning to move its music studios to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London in 2025, where the BBC Symphony Orchestra will then be based.
Zimmer recalled first working at Maida Vale 45 years ago.
“I still remember the strong pull, the desire to touch the walls, as if that would somehow allow me to connect to the artists whose extraordinary music had resonated against these walls on a daily basis,” he said.
“This was a place of revolutionary science in the service of art, this was a place that inspired you to give your best, where music was performed around the clock and art was taken seriously. For the people by the people.
“This was the place that kept a struggling musician like me from giving up.”
The German composer added that he now wants to “make Maida Vale Studios a place that inspires, teaches, technologically serves the arts and humanity, and gives the next generation the same opportunities I was given: to create and to never give up”.
A multi-million pound refurbishment will keep the building’s original façade, refurbish the existing studios and create a not-for-profit educational facility, the BBC said.
In a statement, Bevan and Fellner said:
“Collectively we are determined to continue the BBC’s legacy at Maida Vale by attracting global talent to the UK.
“Through our redevelopment plans we will future proof the historic site, continuing its presence in the local community with a new education facility, whilst creating a world class studio space for the next generation of composers, producers, editors and engineers.”
‘Part of our cultural heritage’
Working Title’s hit films include Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Yesterday and Baby Driver. Zimmer’s business partner Steve Kofsky is also part of the consortium.
Investment is needed – as far back as 2007, the BBC said the run-down facility was “wholly unsuitable for the 21st Century”, with problems including asbestos.
When the corporation announced plans to sell the site in 2018, Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich was among those who called for it to be saved, saying it was an “incredibly important part of our cultural heritage – every bit as important as Abbey Road studios”.
It was given Grade II listed status in 2020 – but the BBC was criticised for objecting to the decision, which lowered its potential value because it could not be demolished and sold for lucrative housing or flats