It not only just signifies the end of a building, but the true end of the kind of thing Pebble Mill produced in the past. It's a shame to think they're pretty much restricted to OBs now they don't have a studio production base. Sad, very sad.
We mustn't forget the new "Drama Village" production centre at Birmingham Uni - I'm not clear on how much actual studio space there is though.
RIP Pebble Mill
iirc there arent any studios as such, and i dont think the facilities are even sound proofed.
This is heartbreaking stuff really. As someone who grew up in the Midlands, the Mill was such a familiar building, used on screen so often. The daily programme Pebble Mill At One featured the building in most of it's title sequences, famously came from the long foyer outside Studio-A and featured pop performances on the terraces outside. Midlands Today often came from the garden on nice days and the Conservatory in the quadrangle was the home to Hot Chefs and Good Morining with Anne and Nick. Amazing to think that 10 years ago, virtually all of daytime BBC 1 came live from Pebble Mill ... anyone else remember the in-vision continuity links by Mo Dutta between the programmes and around Good Morning?
Sad to think that there is no virtually no live network television production capability in the West Midlands at all.
I am amazed they have left the BBC logo on the building as they demolish it...
1. It is no longer a BBC building, so confusing, especially to guests who may not have realised the building has moved.
Reminds me of a story i heard of a guest who was due on a programme on LBC radio in late 80's. The cab pulled up at the pile of rubble that was their studios - they'd moved a few months earlier but no-one told the guest or driver.
It not only just signifies the end of a building, but the true end of the kind of thing Pebble Mill produced in the past. It's a shame to think they're pretty much restricted to OBs now they don't have a studio production base. Sad, very sad.
Don't think the Drama village is a TV studio as such - more a "four waller" where you can shoot single camera, or multiple single-camera, rather than a proper studio with a gallery etc. Doctors was shot as if it was a "four waller" even when it was at Pebble Mill - it wasn't shot using studio techniques.
We mustn't forget the new "Drama Village" production centre at Birmingham Uni - I'm not clear on how much actual studio space there is though.
It not only just signifies the end of a building, but the true end of the kind of thing Pebble Mill produced in the past. It's a shame to think they're pretty much restricted to OBs now they don't have a studio production base. Sad, very sad.
We mustn't forget the new "Drama Village" production centre at Birmingham Uni - I'm not clear on how much actual studio space there is though.
RIP Pebble Mill
iirc there arent any studios as such, and i dont think the facilities are even sound proofed.
Get a grip. Ofcourse there are studios are the Mailbox. The network and drama studios are on the 9th floor. There's a big discussion studio (Nolan for 5 Live etc), a Radio 2 studio and assist booth, a big drama studio (Archers, Silver Street etc). There's also a load of work shops for editing etc, aswell as the BBC WM and Asian Network studios at the enterance.
It not only just signifies the end of a building, but the true end of the kind of thing Pebble Mill produced in the past. It's a shame to think they're pretty much restricted to OBs now they don't have a studio production base. Sad, very sad.
We mustn't forget the new "Drama Village" production centre at Birmingham Uni - I'm not clear on how much actual studio space there is though.
RIP Pebble Mill
iirc there arent any studios as such, and i dont think the facilities are even sound proofed.
Get a grip. Ofcourse there are studios are the Mailbox. The network and drama studios are on the 9th floor. There's a big discussion studio (Nolan for 5 Live etc), a Radio 2 studio and assist booth, a big drama studio (Archers, Silver Street etc). There's also a load of work shops for editing etc, aswell as the BBC WM and Asian Network studios at the enterance.
I think the discussion was more along the lines of TV production studios, rather than radio. No-one is denying that a large chunk of network radio production has made it over to the Mailbox (and goo job too!)
So sad to see the end of Pebble Mill. I have fond memories of the Mill, especially from the late 90s on a cold November Friday night, trying to break a world record (with about 90,000 others nationwide) dancing to Steps '5, 6, 7, 8' for Children In Need.
Ever such a shame to see part of the BBC disapearing.
So sad to see these pictures - especially so soon after seeing the demolition of the part of the former BBC Leeds in which I used to work.
I understand the reasons, but it's such a shame that so much of television, both BBC and ITV, is moving from imposing, iconic buildings into faceless offices.
Sadly there is only 1 TV studio at the Mailbox (AFAIK). It's no larger than my old Primary School's Assembly hall (and that was small).
I was lucky enough to be at the Mailbox during the first transmission of Midlands Today from there, and we got to go into the studio after the show. The studio you see on screen is as large as it gets - that's not a set you're seeing, it's the studio walls (or at least 'elements' that have been bolted onto the studio walls). That's why it overlooks the 'Newsroom' which is actualy the Midlands Today/Politics Show and Radio WM news offices altogether. It's within a corner of this office space.
The Mailbox itself has been fully renovated, and all-poshed-up to appeal to a higher class of poncy-clothes-buyer (none of your chav-bags in here!!).
'BBC Birmingham' has quite a large section at the back. But relative to Pebble Mill it's tiny. Really tiny.
The Radio studios are really quite cool (as stated above by 'Dog') but the major problem they're finding with the place is a simple and increasingly problematic lack of space. Pebble Mill was designed as a purpose built TV Centre. Loads of ducting for every conceivable type of TV/Radio connection. Infinately configurable etc... etc...
The Mailbox was designed for sorting the post.
And that's it.
So much stuff has apparently had to be junked, sometimes whether it's needed or not, because there is simply no room for anything.
It might look nice and flashy and good, but the word from everyone I've talked to about the place is that it's a nightmare. One small example is that Pebble Mill had a nice large parking area. The Mailbox doesn't (unless you want to pay something like £5 a day).
Oh yeah, you know one of the supposed reasons for the new 'Drama Village' ? When Studio A (the large one that's just been demolished) was de-comissioned in 1998. It was
officially
locked up. However, when 'Doctors' came along, as we know they used the old Foyer studio, used corridors around Pebble Mill, used private offices of Pebble Mill staff after they'd moved out.... and they 'unofficially' re-opened Studio A. As it was unofficial use, when the men with calculators came round, it was logged as 'closed' and therefore the whole of 'Doctors' production wasn't necessarily accounted for when working out how much space would be needed in any potential new premises. When they eventually noticed, it was too late and Pebble Mill had been sold and its fate sealed. Thereby incurring an unexpected additional expense on top of moving all of the 'accounted for' stuff. I would love to know if that really is the truth... but I guess we'll never know...
So sad to see these pictures - especially so soon after seeing the demolition of the part of the former BBC Leeds in which I used to work.
I understand the reasons, but it's such a shame that so much of television, both BBC and ITV, is moving from imposing, iconic buildings into faceless offices.
Very true, though the BBC needed to progress in the Midlands, it's a shame that Pebble Mill was sacrificed. It also seems odd that it took about 5 years to construct Pebble Mill and it probably takes them about 5 weeks to bring it down. It's also sad to see once how big TV was in the Midlands, you had Pebble Mill and Broad Street, you now have The Mailbox and Gas Street, though as good and up to date they are, both are shadows of their former selves.
What's happening to Lenton Lane? Demolition too? There were some similarly sad pictures on here some months ago just after closure and prior to the auction of the kit.
iirc there arent any studios as such, and i dont think the facilities are even sound proofed.
