 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "MGM-British Studios" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(September 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| MGM-British Studios | |
|---|---|
 Interactive map of MGM-British Studios | |
| Former names | Amalgamated Studios |
| General information | |
| Type | Film studios |
| Location | Elstree Way, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51°39′39″N0°15′33″W / 51.6608°N 0.2592°W /51.6608; -0.2592 |
| Construction started | 1935 (1935) |
| Completed | 1937 |
| Demolished | 1970 (1970) |
| Owner |
|
| Technical details | |
| Floor area | Over 70,000 square feet (6,500 m2) on 7 stages |
MGM-British was a subsidiary ofMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer initially established (asMGM London Films Denham) atDenham Film Studios in 1936. It was in limbo during theSecond World War; however, following the end of hostilities, a facility was acquired inBorehamwood (one of several known asElstree Studios), which remained in use until it was closed in 1970.
MGM London Films Denham Ltd was formed in 1936.[1] The films produced during the initial period atDenham Film Studios wereA Yank at Oxford (1938),The Citadel (1938),Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) andBusman's Honeymoon (US:Haunted Honeymoon, 1940). The first production head wasMichael Balcon. However, he left after a single film and was replaced byVictor Saville. The subsidiary was in abeyance during the war.
Meanwhile, Amalgamated Studios Ltd constructed a large studio on the north side of Elstree Way, Borehamwood, between 1935 and 1937.[2] A January 1937 deal for eight films to be made for the American studioColumbia Pictures soon collapsed. The company was unable to meet the cost of building work, and in February 1939 sold the facility to theRank Organisation,[2] which was not interested in using the studios itself, but wanted to stopJohn Maxwell's rivalBritish International Pictures (BIP) from being able to compete more effectively with Rank's recently openedPinewood Studios.[3] During the war, the studios were leased from Rank by theMinistry of Works which used them for storage purposes.[4]
MGM-London purchased the former Amalgamated Studios,Borehamwood, in April 1944,[5] and changed its name toMGM British Studios Ltd in 1946.[1] After improvements, the studio contained seven stages with over 70,000 square feet (7,000 m2) of floor space. MGM'sEdward, My Son (1949), withSpencer Tracy andDeborah Kerr, was the first film to be produced at the studio.
Films made at the MGM-British Studios for the parent company includedIvanhoe (1952) andThe Dirty Dozen (1967). Production designerAlfred Junge's castle setting for the former was to dominate the Borehamwood skyline for some years afterwards. The facilities were hired by other companies;20th Century Fox shot the filmsAnastasia (1956) andThe Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958), for which a large set of a Chinese town, complete with artificial lakes, covering some 500,000 square feet, was constructed.[6] WhenEaling Studios sold its own studios in 1956, the company moved production of their last few films to MGM-British (with their logo now reading Ealing Films rather than Ealing Studios). Lawrence Bachmann was head of British MGM in the early 1960s.[7]
Lew Grade'sITC used it for filmed television series, includingThe Prisoner (1967–68). One of the last films shot there, MGM's2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), has been cited as one of the primary causes behind the closure of the studio, owing toStanley Kubrick's production occupying more and more of the available studio space—eventually using all of it—for almost two years.
The studio facility was in operation until 1970, one of the last productions being ITC'sUFO television series. At that time, MGM made a production and distribution deal withEMI, and began to use its facility (EMI-Elstree Studios, formerly Associated British Elstree Studios) becomingMGM-EMI, an arrangement which only lasted until 1973, with MGM having a financial interest in only a few films."[8] MGM's own Borehamwood site was cleared and redeveloped for industrial use and housing.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
