Broadcasting House, Bristol

Last updated


Broadcasting House, Bristol
BBC Bristol TV Studios, Whiteladies Road - geograph.org.uk - 149571.jpg
Broadcasting House, Bristol
General information
Coordinates 51°27′40″N2°36′29″W / 51.46111°N 2.60806°W / 51.46111; -2.60806

The BBC campus, Broadcasting House Bristol, is located on Whiteladies Road, Bristol. The first building to be occupied was 21/23 Whiteladies Road, which was built in 1852 and is a Grade II listed building, [1] with four radio studios. It was formally opened by the Lord Mayor of Bristol on 18 September 1934. [2] The BBC has been on the same site ever since.

Contents

Prior to the opening of Broadcasting House, the BBC had provided a more limited service. It began broadcasting on 13 February 1923 from Marconi House in the Strand. [3] Operating as its 5WA station (this being the fifth BBC station to go on air) the new station broadcast to people living within 25 miles of Bristol. The station's initial output was very limited and even in 1931 the programme centre employed a staff of just three people, operating from a small studio over the Midland Bank in Queen's Road. [4]

Main site

Since first opening, Broadcasting House has grown to incorporate 25, [5] 27/29, [6] 31/33, [7] (all also Grade II listed) and 33A&B Whiteladies Road, as well as nos 1, 3, 5, 7/9, 11/13, 15/17 and 19 Tyndall's Park Road. It now provides offices and technical facilities for the BBC Radio & Music Production Bristol, BBC West and BBC Radio Bristol. [2]

Network radio studios, a network television studio (Studio B -Green Screen Virtual Studio), a regional television studio (Studio A), local radio studios, a combined television and radio newsroom, and an outside broadcast base have all been built on the site.

In 1986 33A&B Whiteladies Road were demolished to make way for a new development providing post-production facilities, a restaurant, library and headquarters offices for the South and West Region, as well as a new reception for Broadcasting House. The new building was opened by Chris Patten on 19 January 1990.

After being formally established here in 1957, the BBC Studios Natural History Unit moved to a new home in Bridgewater House, Bristol city centre, in 2022. [8] [9]

Other Bristol facilities

At the time of World War II the BBC also had radio facilities at Redland Park Hall, All Saints Hall, the Chapter House, College Road, Clifton Parish Hall, the Cooperative Hall and the Clifton Rocks Railway.

In more recent times 15 Whiteladies Road, St Mary's Church in Belgrave Road, and Christchurch Hall [10] have also provided accommodation and facilities. A radio control room was built in St George's Church, Brandon Hill.

From 1986, the BBC leased warehouses on the Kingsland Trading Estate, and also (from 2002) on the Lawrence Hill Industrial Park, to provide facilities for Casualty when it was produced in Bristol. However, the production moved to Cardiff in 2011.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol</span> City and county in England

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. The county is the West of England combined authority area, this includes the Greater Bristol area and nearby places such as Bath.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton College</span> Public school in Bristol, England

Clifton College is a public school in the city of Bristol in South West England, founded in 1862 and offering both boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18. In its early years, unlike most contemporary public schools, it emphasised science rather than classics in the curriculum, and was less concerned with social elitism, for example by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated boarding house for Jewish boys, called Polack's House. Having linked its General Studies classes with Badminton School, it admitted girls to every year group in 1987, and was the first of the traditional boys' public schools to become fully coeducational. Polack's House closed in 2005 but a scholarship fund open to Jewish candidates still exists. Clifton College is one of the original 26 English public schools as defined by the Public Schools Yearbook of 1889.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton, Bristol</span> Suburb of Bristol, England

Clifton is both a suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The eastern part of the suburb lies within the ward of Clifton Down.

The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (BOVTS) is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol City Centre</span> Central Business District in England

Bristol City Centre is the commercial, cultural and business centre of Bristol, England. It is the area north of the New Cut of the River Avon, bounded by Clifton Wood and Clifton to the north-west, Kingsdown and Cotham to the north, and St Pauls, Lawrence Hill and St Phillip's Marsh to the east. The Bristol Royal Infirmary, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, the BBC, the main campus of the University of Bristol, the Crown and Magistrate's Courts, Temple Meads railway station, Bristol bus station, the Park Street, Broadmead and Cabot Circus shopping areas together with numerous music venues, theatres and restaurants are located in this area. The area consists of the council wards of Central, Hotwells & Harbourside, and part of Lawrence Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton Down railway station</span> Railway station in Bristol, England

Clifton Down railway station is on the Severn Beach line and serves the district of Clifton in Bristol, England. It is 3.9 miles (6.3 km) from Bristol Temple Meads. Its three letter station code is CFN. The station has two platforms, each serving trains in one direction only. As of 2015 it is managed by Great Western Railway, which is the third franchise to be responsible for the station since privatisation in 1997. They provide all train services at the station, mainly a train every 30 minutes in each direction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldney Hall</span>

Goldney Hall is a self-catered hall of residence in the University of Bristol. It is one of three in the Clifton area of Bristol, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whiteladies Road</span> Road in Bristol

Whiteladies Road is a main road in Bristol, England. It runs north from the Victoria Rooms to Durdham Down, and separates Clifton on the west side from Redland and Cotham on the east. It forms part of the A4018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Rooms, Bristol</span> Building of the University of Bristol

The Victoria Rooms, also known as the Vic Rooms, houses the University of Bristol's music department in Clifton, Bristol, England, on a prominent site at the junction of Queens Road and Whiteladies Road. The building, originally assembly rooms, was designed by Charles Dyer and was constructed between 1838 and 1842 in Greek revival style, and named in honour of Queen Victoria, who had acceded to the throne in the previous year. An eight column Corinthian portico surmounts the entrance, with a classical relief sculpture designed by Musgrave Watson above. The construction is of dressed stonework, with a slate roof. A bronze statue of Edward VII, was erected in 1912 at the front of the Victoria Rooms, together with a curved pool and several fountains with sculptures in the Art Nouveau style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BBC West</span> BBC Region in west of England

BBC West is one of the BBC's English Regions serving Bristol, the majority of Wiltshire and Gloucestershire; northern and eastern Somerset and northeastern Dorset.

Richard Shackleton Pope was a British architect working mainly in Bristol. His father was a clerk of works for Sir Robert Smirke, and Pope succeeded him, also working for C.R. Cockerell. He moved to Bristol to work on one of Cockerell's projects and decided to settle in the city, where he became District Surveyor from 1831 to 1874, with considerable influence over building works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton High School, Bristol</span> Private day school in Clifton, Bristol, England

Clifton High School is a co-educational private school in Clifton, Bristol, England. Clifton High School was founded as an all-girls' school in 1877 for girls aged 7–17, and the nearby Clifton College was then a boys' school. In 1887, a preparatory class was set up where boys were soon admitted. It has a student:teacher ratio of 1:5.56. It became fully coeducational in 2009. It is a member of the Society of Heads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grade I listed buildings in Bristol</span>

There are 100 Grade I listed buildings in Bristol, England according to Bristol City Council. The register includes many structures which for convenience are grouped together in the list below.

There are 212 Grade II* listed buildings in Bristol, England.

The Whiteladies Picture House is a cinema on Whiteladies Road in Clifton, Bristol, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Lido, Bristol</span> Building in Bristol, England

The Lido, Bristol is a historic lido situated in Oakfield Place in the Whiteladies Road area of Clifton, Bristol, England. Originally opened in approximately 1850, the pool eventually fell into disrepair and was closed in 1990. Despite being considered for demolition, the building was given Grade II* listed building status in 1998. It was purchased by the Bristol Glass Boat Company who restored the pool, for its reopening in November 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton East (former ward)</span> Human settlement in England

Clifton East was one of the thirty-five council wards in Bristol, England. As the name suggests, the ward covered the eastern part of the Clifton area of Bristol. The ward ceased to exist in May 2016 following a boundary review. It was mostly replaced by a new ward called Clifton Down, with the south-west corner of Clifton East being moved into the neighbouring ward of Clifton.”

Halls of residence at the University of Bristol are generally located within three distinct areas of Bristol, the City Centre, Clifton and Stoke Bishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton Down (ward)</span> Human settlement in England

Clifton Down is one of the thirty-four council wards in the city of Bristol in the Southwest of England, United Kingdom.

References

  1. Historic England. "Nos.21 and 23 Broadcasting House (1202692)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  2. 1 2 "The BBC in Bristol". BBC. 3 September 2010. Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  3. John Penny, On the Air: a short history of broadcasting to the Bristol area (Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 102, 2001), p. 2
  4. John Penny, On the Air: a short history of broadcasting to the Bristol area (Bristol Historical Association pamphlets, no. 102, 2001), p. 4
  5. Historic England. "No 25 (1202693)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  6. Historic England. "Nos 27 and 29 (1202694)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  7. Historic England. "Nos.31 and 33 (1202695)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  8. Gogarty, Conor (28 May 2021). "BBC Studios to leave historic Bristol HQ". BristolLive. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  9. "Historic moment as BBC Studios in Bristol announces a new home". BBC Studios News. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  10. "Christchurch Studios". Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. Retrieved 26 January 2011.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Broadcasting House, Bristol at Wikimedia Commons