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 Interactive map of Riverside Studios | |
| Location | Hammersmith London,W6 England |
|---|---|
| Public transit |  Hammersmith (District/Piccadilly)Hammersmith (Circle/Hammersmith & City) |
| Owner | Riverside Trust |
| Type | Arts Centre,Cinema,Television studio |
| Production | Celebrity Juice,The Apprentice: You're Fired!,The York Realist,The Last Leg |
| Opened | 1976–2014 / 2019– |
| Website | |
| riversidestudios | |
Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the north bank of theRiver Thames inHammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.
Having opened in May 1976 (49 years ago) (1976-05), the original building closed for redevelopment in September 2014 (11 years ago) (2014-09). A new Riverside Studios reopened on its original site in August 2019. In March 2023, the Riverside Trust announced it was placing the theatre intoadministration because of debt incurred. In January 2025, it was announced that Riverside Studios had been purchased and will be operated by the Anil Agarwal Riverside Studios Trust.
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In 1933, a former Victorian iron foundry on Crisp Road, London, was bought by Triumph Films and converted into a relatively compact film studio with two sound stages and a dubbing theatre. In 1935, the studios were taken over byJulius Hagen (then owner ofTwickenham Studios) with the idea of using Riverside for makingquota quickies. However, by 1937 his company had gone into liquidation. Between 1937 and 1946, the studios were owned byJack Buchanan and produced such films asWe'll Meet Again (1943) withVera Lynn andThe Seventh Veil (1945) withJames Mason. In 1946 the studios were acquired by Alliance Film Studios (then owners ofTwickenham Studios andSouthall Studios) and produced films includingThey Made Me a Fugitive (1948) withTrevor Howard,The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950) withAlistair Sim andMargaret Rutherford andFather Brown (1954) withAlec Guinness.
In 1954, the studios were acquired by theBritish Broadcasting Corporation for its television service.[1][2] Renamed The BBC Riverside Television Studios,[3] the building was officially opened on 29 March 1957 byQueen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Series 2 to 6 ofHancock's Half Hour (1957–1960) were made there, along with other comedy, drama and music programmes, including the science-fiction serialQuatermass and the Pit (1958–1959),Dixon of Dock Green,Six-Five Special,The Old Grey Whistle Test,Z-Cars,Top of the Pops (1965), and the children's programmesBlue Peter[4] andPlay School.[5] (1964–1968) Episodes ofDoctor Who were made at Riverside between 1964 and 1968, and Studio 1 was where First DoctorWilliam Hartnell's regeneration scene was filmed.[6] The facility remained in regular use until the BBC left in 1974.[7]
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In 1974, a charitable trust formed byHammersmith and Fulham Council took control of the building, and two large multi-purpose spaces designed byMichael Reardon were created from the studio's two main sound stages. While preparing Riverside's opening festival in 1976, the venue's first Artistic DirectorPeter Gill permitted an amateur West London music group calledThe Strand to use one of the performance spaces to rehearse. They went on to becomeThe Sex Pistols.[8] Riverside's original policy was to have a combination of in-house and visiting company productions of classical and contemporary plays and dance. Running concurrently with the main programme were regular events and activities including a film, music, education, workshop and play reading programme. David Gothard, the founding programming director, brought "The Dead Class" byTadeusz Kantor and theCricot 2 company fromKraków in Poland in 1977.
Riverside Studios became fully operational in 1978 with Gill's landmark production ofThe Cherry Orchard. The venue quickly acquired an international reputation for excellence and innovation with productions includingThe Changeling withBrian Cox andRobert Lindsay (1978),Measure for Measure withHelen Mirren (1979) andJulius Caesar withPhil Daniels (1980),[9] as well as a variety of international work – including, notably, that of Polish theatre maestroTadeusz Kantor. In 1978, Riverside hosted the first of manyDance Umbrella seasons, featuring the work of Rosemary Butcher andRichard Alston. Gill also offered residencies to artists includingBruce McLean and Ian Coughlin and companies such as the Black Theatre Co-operative (nowNitroBeat).[10] The venue was also used by the BBC for some television recording, including a 1979 episode ofParkinson for which hostMichael Parkinson interviewed former United States Secretary of StateHenry Kissinger.
Art exhibitions (includingPrints byHoward Hodgkin, 1978) had initially been curated byMilena Kalinovska in Riverside's foyer, but following Gill's departure in 1980, a purpose-built gallery space was established by the resident architect Will Alsop and John Lyall along with technical director Steven Scott. The directorship of Jenny Stein established the first exhibition and showed works by the painter and graphic artistEdvard Munch. Subsequent exhibitions includedDavid Hockney (Paintings and Drawings for Parade, 1981),[11]Antony Gormley (New Sculpture, 1984),Louise Bourgeois (Recent Work, 1990) andYoko Ono (In Facing, 1990). In 1985, Kalinovska (who was Riverside's Exhibitions Director from 1982 to 1986) was nominated forThe Turner Prize.
From 1980, David Gothard directed the performing arts program and invitedMichael Clark to become Riverside's first resident choreographer. He made 16 original pieces at the studios before establishing his own dance company in 1984. Also in 1980,Samuel Beckett directed the San Quentin Theatre Workshop's rehearsals of his playEndgame in Studio 2, returning to Riverside four years later to direct the same company inWaiting for Godot. Under Gothard's direction, there were performances byDario Fo andFranca Rame, Le Cirque Imaginaire, Eckehard Scall and the Berliner Ensemble, theMarket Theatre (Johannesburg),Cricot 2 ofKraków, Collectivo De Parma, and independent dance collaborations withMerce Cunningham andJohn Cage and members of theJudson Church.
In November 1987, a 200-seat cinema was opened by the actressVanessa Redgrave.
In 1990, jazz veteranAdelaide Hall starred in the movieSophisticated Lady, a documentary about her life, which included a performance of her in concert recorded live at Riverside Studios.[12]
William Burdett-Coutts (also Artistic Director ofAssembly) was appointed Artistic Director of Riverside Studios in 1993 (a position he held until June 2020). While Riverside continued its multi-arts programming (hosting companies such asComplicite,The Wooster Group andHoward Barker's The Wrestling School), its 200-seat cinema was celebrated for itsdouble bill programmes and the variety of international film festivals which took place annually. In 1996, television production returned to Riverside whenTFI Friday withChris Evans took up residence in Studio 1 (until 2000).CD:UK was broadcast from Riverside between 2003 and 2006, while later TV projects included Channel 4'sT4 (2006–2009),Popworld andThe Last Leg, BBC'sNever Mind the Buzzcocks and ITV'sCelebrity Juice (2008–2014).
In September 2014, Riverside Studios closed for redevelopment.
London developerMount Anvil, working in conjunction with A2 Dominion, redeveloped Riverside Studios and the adjacent Queen's Wharf building.Assael Architecture, were employed to design a new building on the site centred around 165 residential flats, with new studio facilities for theatre and television, two cinemas, a riverside restaurant and café/bar as well as flexible event spaces. As part of the redevelopment, a new riverside walkway connects to the Thames Path alongside the late VictorianHammersmith Bridge.
During the redevelopment, Riverside continued to produce shows includingNirbhaya[13] by Yael Farber at international venues including theSouthbank Centre[14] and theLynn Redgrave Theatre[15] (2015),Raz, a new play byJim Cartwright atTrafalgar Studios (2016)[16] andA Christmas Carol withSimon Callow at theArts Theatre (2016–17).[17]
Riverside Studios reopened to the public in late 2019.[18]
Since then, its stages have hosted such figures asWoody Harrelson,Benjamin Zephaniah,Eddie Izzard,Roger McGough,Andy Serkis,Jenna Russell,Jimmy Carr,Sir Trevor Nunn,Jack Dee,Louisa Harland,Tom Allen,KT Tunstall,Sharon Gless andDane Baptiste. Meanwhile, performance and rehearsal spaces within the building have been used by a range of community groups and theatre companies includingFlute Theatre, who run creative projects for young people with autism, and our founding artistic directorPeter Gill (playwright), who returned in 2022 to rehearse his latest playSomething in the Air.
Since 2020, the long-running television panel showHave I Got News for You has been recorded in Studio 1 with a variety of guests includingSue Perkins,Angela Rippon,Phil Wang andDiane Morgan. In the same studio in 2020 and 2021, the BBC also recorded the Christmas and New Year Specials ofTop of the Pops. In 2021,Olly Alexander recorded their New Year's Eve concert in Studio 1, with special guestsKylie Minogue and thePet Shop Boys.
In April 2022, a BBC Heritage Trail plaque, commemorating Riverside's history as BBC studios, was unveiled byBob Harris (radio presenter), the longest-serving host ofThe Old Grey Whistle Test. The event was attended by numerous guests who had worked at BBC Riverside Television Studios includingCarole Ann Ford (Doctor Who,Dixon of Dock Green,Z Cars),Frazer Hines (Doctor Who) andAnne Reid (Hancock's Half Hour).
In March 2023 the theatre trust announced that the venue was being placed in administration because of the debt incurred by the redevelopment, coupled with increased operating expenses and a reduced revenue stream. The studios operated as normal during the administration process.[19]
On 8 January 2025, it was announced that Indian businessmanAnil Agarwal had purchased Riverside Studios for an undisclosed sum. The studios are now operated by the Anil Agarwal Riverside Studios Trust.[20]
In 2026, Riverside Studios will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of its opening as an arts centre.
51°29′17.9″N0°13′41.1″W / 51.488306°N 0.228083°W /51.488306; -0.228083
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