Will the BBC make the grade?
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
13/08/2008
Hammersmith and Fulham Council is backing a campaign to make BBC Television Centre a grade II listed building.
Calls to save key parts of the Wood Lane structure in White City come amid fears that the borough could lose one of its most iconic buildings after 2012 once the BBC transfers staff to its other offices in London and Salford, Greater Manchester.
The complex is already on Hammersmith & Fulham’s local register of buildings of merit and stands in the Wood Lane Conservation Area, designated by the council in March 1991.
In a letter to Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Councillor Mark Loveday, Cabinet Member for Strategy, says the council supports English Heritage in its bid to give parts of the complex grade II listed building status.
These include the famous Blue Peter garden, the canteen building, scenery workshops and the distinctive circular drum that houses studios and offices. These areas have 1950s design and architectural features including a mosaic from prolific artist John Piper, a gilded sculpture of the Greek sun god Helios and the well-known studded wall, with its circular discs.
He said: “Hammersmith & Fulham Council has always recognised the importance of BBC Television Centre and we have done as much as our powers allow to conserve it. We are pleased that English Heritage is now supporting our position.
“The BBC has been part of this borough’s heritage for well over 50 years, even before Television Centre was built, when the corporation used Shepherds Bush Empire and Riverside Studios to record their programmes.
“Our residents see the BBC as part of their background and heritage, and we believe they deserve to keep this part of history. We do not want to lose important cultural signposts that are not just architecturally significant, but also remind us of great moments in television history.
“The centre is truly iconic and key areas need to be preserved for future generations, and that is why we support English Heritage’s calls for it to be listed.”
English Heritage has asked the Government to ‘recognise the extraordinary cultural and architectural significance’ of the White City studios.
Peter Beacham, Heritage Protection Director for English Heritage, said: “This building is not just architecturally important. As one of the first purpose-built television studios in the world, it represents the moment when Britain led Europe into the television age. The BBC itself is an important part of our British identity and Television Centre has acquired an iconic presence.
“The nation has an immense fondness for this building and what it represents for our culture. We know the BBC is rightly proud of their building and their heritage, and we are enthusiastically working with them to make sure that marking TV Centre’s national importance will not affect its ability to adapt to changing technology or new uses.“
If the Department for Culture, Media and Sport agrees to list the site, any major demolition work to parts of the 48-year-old complex would need approval from the local authority, Hammersmith & Fulham Council. Any plans to alter existing brickwork, doors, windows or the interior of the building, which opened in 1960, would also need official consent.
Being situated within a Conservation Area TV Centre is already given statutory protection,and any plans to alter it would have to be passed by the council – but this does not stop changes to the interior of the building.
Cllr Loveday added: "We are creating a borough of opportunity and while we welcome the chance to work with developers to regenerate certain parts of Hammersmith & Fulham, this cannot be at the cost of our well-known landmarks. We regret that the BBC will not be able to make use of the building in the long term but the important parts of it can be a key focus for the regeneration of the area.”
A BBC spokesman said: "The BBC is happy to discuss with English Heritage any proposal it has, and we will comment to the Secretary of State on the historic and architectural merit of TVC in due course.
“We have announced that we do not intend to occupy the whole of Television Centre after 2012, but any reference to detailed development plans for the building or site is premature.
“We recognise the historical importance of the building, and will be looking for a solution that best preserves the interests of the BBC and of the licence fee payer, but there are no firm plans currently on the table."
A spokeswoman from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, said: “A decision will be made later this year.”
The BBC’s Broadcasting House in Portland Place, which recently underwent a major revamp, is already a grade II listed building and dates back to 1932 and the art deco period.
