Television Centre

Television Centre (TVC) was the first purpose built television studio in the country and has been radically reinvented under a site wide masterplan regeneration as a new, fully mixed use development, which is now open to the public for the very first time. The original building was conceived in a question mark form. Central to the plan was the main ‘doughnut’, a circular building which at the upper floors, held the office functions for the Television Centre and at the lower levels, the dressing rooms. Central to this ring sat the Helios Courtyard, at the heart of which was the Helios sculpture surrounded by a water feature held within a cast concrete bowl. Radiating out from this ‘doughnut’ sat the functional spaces supporting the studio activities and the eight studios themselves. Where the site was previously inaccessible to the public, it is now fully permeable and connected to the surrounding area. A wide range of uses has been incorporated into the masterplan to ensure its ongoing success as a new and vibrant destination to work, live and play. In 2011, the team won the bid to purchase the site and to work with the BBC and London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham (LBHF) to re-imagine the distinctive buildings and question mark plan diagram in preparation for the BBC to vacate the site in 2013. Focal to the vision for the project is the preservation and celebration of the original listed features, including the circular mosaic lined Helios Courtyard, complete with the golden Helios sculpture and water feature at its heart, and the original Stage Door, now principal entrance to the residential apartments, which houses the refurbished vibrant John Piper mural. The project also champions British design by working with a range of architectural practices, both up-and-coming and well-established, to design the buildings and some interior spaces across the masterplan. The building surrounding the Helios Courtyard has been sensitively adapted and extended to accommodate commercial uses at ground floor. Above are 162 dwellings of different characters, and a 47-bedroom hotel, whilst below at basement level sits an extensive gym and pool accessible to the residents and visitors alike. This circular building is wrapped with a curved planted residential courtyard, providing a communal space and buffer to the Crescent Building, which is conceived as a terrace of five mansion blocks, accommodating further dwellings. The Crescent Building celebrates its aspect onto Hammersmith Park, with generous projecting balconies and sliding doors which bring the outside in. The question mark diagram form is completed with a dramatic nine-storey building which accommodates an exciting range of uses, including restaurants and cafes, a three-screen cinema and a club complete with roof-top pool. Many of the key important spaces have been retained and enhanced, with their finishes brought back to their original glory. The materials employed across the new elements take their cue and are inspired by the original building and the era in which it was constructed. For example, the choice of brick responds to the original retained elements; the bespoke tiles used internally refer to the graphic design of the 50s and 60s and the mosaic finishes across the site, as well as the design of the metal work, which reference the retained south stair. The development brings this iconic site back to life and creates a new identity for Television Centre (TVC) as a centre for creativity, a public space and a special place to live. By stitching the site back into the local area, TVC accentuates and further promotes LBHF’s ambitions for Wood Lane, and the adjacent neighbourhoods.