UK’s Twickenham Studios opens £50m extension in Liverpool

The UK’s city of Liverpool is set to gain a new film and TV studio worth £50 million ($67m), as world-renowned Twickeham Studios expands.

Twickenham Studios is famous for its work on movies such as Blade Runner, The Italian Job and Ghandi.

It struck a deal worth £50 million with Capital & Centric for a site at the iconic Littlewoods building. It is expected that the studios will be up and running in 2020.

The new studios will feature two new 17,000sq. meteres sound stages alongside supporting workshops, wardrobe and prop storage and offices.

Twickenham Studios has agreed to take 8,000sq meteres of space in the enormous art deco Littlewoods building, which was once home to the football pools.

The deal will bring a respected name in the film industry to Liverpool. Twickenham’s London studio was the UK’s largest when set up in 1913, and went on to be the setting for a roster of screen classics.

Directors and producers are currently flocking to Liverpool, with blockbuster productions including Fantastic Beasts, Where to Find Them and Peaky Blinders filmed on its streets. Last year alone, the city clocked up 1,359 days of filming across 289 projects.

Maria Walker, chief operating officer of Twickenham Studios, said: “This is a major milestone in our history. When we saw the vision for Littlewoods we knew we had to be a part of what will be an incredibly special place.

“Liverpool’s architecture, accessibility and can do attitude sees film-makers return to the city time and time again. With the added benefit of our studios, they’ll have access to gold-standard interior facilities right on the doorstep of unique exterior locations. It will be great to see Liverpool become an international focal point for TV and film.”

Joe Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool, said: “The arrival of such an iconic film production company as Twickenham Studios to Liverpool is a fantastic vote of confidence in the city’s booming film industry.”

The news arrives after UK commercial broadcaster Channel 4 shortlisted the city as a spot for its new HQ offices and creative hubs.