Some parts look quite good, others not so good, but a point to make is should it look ugly but unique or ugly and generic? An example is The London Studios which just looks like a 1970's office block.
Some parts look quite good, others not so good, but a point to make is should it look ugly but unique or ugly and generic? An example is The London Studios which just looks like a 1970's office block.
No, the London Television Centre looks great, the upper tower bock is a 70's office block but it is very well built and is unique and recognisable. The lower bits are fairly attractive too and the insides are still perfectly functional
Have a look at the link I posted earlier, that page makes the point that the East Tower of TV Centre was built only 8 years before the LWT tower and the latter has last well compared with the one at the BBC
I don't think Television Centre looks that bad. Fair enough the architecture is nothing special because that was the style of the period it was built in. The thing that makes it good for me is the interesting design and shape.
At least it's not just a square block of a building.
Some parts look quite good, others not so good, but a point to make is should it look ugly but unique or ugly and generic? An example is The London Studios which just looks like a 1970's office block.
No, the London Television Centre looks great, the upper tower bock is a 70's office block but it is very well built and is unique and recognisable. The lower bits are fairly attractive too and the insides are still perfectly functional
Have a look at the link I posted earlier, that page makes the point that the East Tower of TV Centre was built only 8 years before the LWT tower and the latter has last well compared with the one at the BBC
The East Tower is pretty dismal, a plain looking 60s office block. There are plenty of bits of TVC (mainly the bolted on bits actually) that are pretty woeful and characterless. At one point in the 80s (I think) they actually ran out of office space at TVC and constructed a series of offices running around the main 'doughnut' on the third floor. The 'periphery' as it is known is tin-shed construction stuff and literally sits on the roofs of studios and control rooms below. It's too cold in winter and too hot in summer and feels like working in a portakabin. It blocked the view of the park from most of the proper offices in the doughnut itself and obscured the view from the Club Terrace almost totally. They could get rid of that lot for a start IMO.
The East Tower is pretty dismal, a plain looking 60s office block. There are plenty of bits of TVC (mainly the bolted on bits actually) that are pretty woeful and characterless. At one point in the 80s (I think) they actually ran out of office space at TVC and constructed a series of offices running around the main 'doughnut' on the third floor. The 'periphery' as it is known is tin-shed construction stuff and literally sits on the roofs of studios and control rooms below. It's too cold in winter and too hot in summer and feels like working in a portakabin. It blocked the view of the park from most of the proper offices in the doughnut itself and obscured the view from the Club Terrace almost totally. They could get rid of that lot for a start IMO.
Yep - the periphery is far from great - as are some of the buildings on the 7th floor, which are of similar construction. It can be like working in a greenhouse...
However the core doughnut and the studios are still exemplary for studio design, apart from the asbestos and the more-than-full cable ducts.
Executives are promulgating the myth that "TV Centre is an analogue building in a digital age" - except that in reality every studio is digital, and TC1, TC8 and soon TC4, are probably the best general HD studios in the UK...
:-(
A former member
I believe if its the original building then yes it should be listed as there is nothing else like it, although should there not be taking out the asbestos out of the building?
If it become listed what else could it be used for unless it become home as a Independent studios for many production companies?
I believe if its the original building then yes it should be listed as there is nothing else like it, although should there not be taking out the asbestos out of the building?
The Beeb have been trying to remove the asbestos for many, many, many years. The issue is that the whole building is made of the stuff - it was a standard building material for decades.
What the Beeb have done is their best to ensure that any asbestos is safely contained, with that which could easily be exposed to staff sealed off or removed. That which is not likely to be exposed is being left. Anyone who walks round TVC will have seen the stickers...
They thought they'd done this - and then discovered that quite a few studios weren't as "sealed" as they thought/hoped...
I suspect the only way to remove all the asbestos is to demolish the building...
Quote:
If it become listed what else could it be used for unless it become home as a Independent studios for many production companies?
Well another BBC West London building - Kensington House - is now a swish hotel - the K West... Given the new mainline and tube stations, and the huge shopping centre being built the otherside of the road - a hotel is not a ridiculous idea, particularly if the Beeb are still up the road at White City.