Sad in a way - it's a famous building - but makes sense. It's just not needed anymore.
EDIT: And I'm glad that these celebs will get their salaries cut, they are paid too much, like Woss, and I can think of loads of people who are way funnier than him.
The building, which was opened in June 1960, will not be sold until 2013. By then, some operations will have moved to Salford, near Manchester. The BBC will also have finished its redevelopment of Broadcasting House in central London.
I believe that the buyer will attach wheels to the building, and then move it to Finland.
:-(
A former member
bilky asko posted:
Quote:
The building, which was opened in June 1960, will not be sold until 2013. By then, some operations will have moved to Salford, near Manchester. The BBC will also have finished its redevelopment of Broadcasting House in central London.
EDIT: And I'm glad that these celebs will get their salaries cut, they are paid too much, like Woss, and I can think of loads of people who are way funnier than him.
TBH, I doubt they'll mind too much. After all, they're the first to complain when figures are leaked, saying 'I don't ask to be paid like this, it's all those daft men in suits in the coridoors of power' etc.
That said though... perhaps the Beeb could do a
Homes under the Hammer
and refurbish TVC for £80m, and then sell it on for its vastly increased price
I'm confused by this; I thought TVC had long ago been sold to Land Securities and the BBC were simply sitting tenants?
The BBC have always held the freehold on the site, AIUI they just sold off the buildings and then leased them back. Land Securites are no longer involved with the BBC, although I can't remember who took over
It's a big shame they're not needed by the beeb, but they still attract a lot of business in terms of studio and post production resources, whether that will be the case in 2013 remains to be seen, but it's not necessarily the end of TV Centre!
In other words the BBC are not making enough quality television to justify the studios existance, hence the enthusiasm for the one show in an office - with awful sound and production values, Watchdog 'live from the office' etc.
The day the BBC don't need TV studios we may as well give up and admit defeat. Salford (£500m) is no replacement for TVC which would cost £80m to refurb - yes its another Pebble Mill all over again.
I'm confused by this; I thought TVC had long ago been sold to Land Securities and the BBC were simply sitting tenants?
No - the TVC site and buildings are owned by the BBC. LST were hired to take over outsourced facilities and building management on all the London BBC sites, and thus managed TV Centre as part of this. HOWEVER as part of this deal LST DID get the White City site - not TV Centre - but there was a clause which allowed the BBC to buy it back, which they did towards the end of their links with LST, allowing them to use a different financial model to hold these premises. (It was too confusing for me to remember!)
Land Securities no longer manage the BBCs premises, Johnsons Controls now have the contract.
The BBC currently own both the Television Centre site, and BBC Resources which operates the studios on this site. They are selling off BBC Resources, but this then complicates a sale of the site once the non-Resources staff have moved out (if they do) once Salford and BH are finished.
The BBC now has a lot of office space at White City - Media Centre, Broadcast Centre, Energy Centre, Periphery buildings and White City 1 (previously just called White City) and are likely to be losing 10% or more of their workforce - so may not need TVC for accommodation purposes for much longer...
If they no longer own studios in England other than those for News (they won't be building studios of their own in Salford for network TV production) then why own a large studio centre building - with tenants?
Personally I think it will be a very, very sad day when an iconic building, with such a heritage of public service production, built when quality mattered more than other factors, is sold off, and please don't let it be demolished as were other studio centres built to similar values (Pebble Mill?)
However it may be emblematic of a change in the BBCs values and direction, towards publishing not production...
If Channel 4 had any sense, they would get in there and buy it. They are suffering decreasing ratings and only have enough money to last until 2012 where they will begin to struggle. By purchasing the studios, they will gain a lot more money through companies like ITV and even the BBC themselves wanting to hire the studios.
