IN THE NEWS
34 APRIL 2020 • WWW.LSIONLINE.COM[UK] Riverside Studios in
Hammersmith has been
a creative hub in London for
decades, created from a former
iron foundry in the 1930s and
subsequently producing
a number of classic British
films. When the original TV
Studios opened here, they were
said to be the most advanced in
the country and later produced
milestone TV programmes
including Hancock’s Half Hour
and Doctor Who while under
BBC ownership.
In later years, its many
claims to fame included being
used as a rehearsal space for
the band that would go on to
become the Sex Pistols. It also
hosted exhibitions by artists
as diverse as David Hockney,
Anthony Gormley and Yoko
Ono while the 200-seat cinema
was recognised for its double-
bill programmes and annual
international film festival.
Between 1996 and 2000, the
ground-breaking TFI Friday with
Chris Evans was broadcast from
Studio 1 while other broadcast
projects included CD:UK,
Channel 4’s T4, Popworld and
The Last Leg, plus Never Mind
the Buzzcocks, and Celebrity
Juice from the BBC and ITV,
respectively.
The original building closed
in 2014 to make way for
a purpose-built, multi-function
facility, capable of facilitating
Riverside’s continued
development across numerous
performance and production
disciplines. After demolition and
complete redevelopment over
five years, the new Riverside
Studios offers 90,000sq.ft
of flexible creative spaces,
including not only the most
modern TV studios in the UK,
but also two theatre spaces,
two cinema screens, the Studio
8 Cafe & Bar, and an upscale
brasserie, Sam’s Riverside.
Specialist systems integrator
Stage Electrics won a £2m
contract for the supply and
installation of specialist
production lighting and AV
infrastructure throughout the
new building, including
a high-quality PA for the public
areas, plus rigging systemsfor the smaller studio and the
cinema. Working directly for
the Riverside Trust on a site
managed by developer and
main contractor Mount Anvil,
Stage Electrics’ work facilitated
the specialist installations of the
Broadcast Systems Integrator
ATG Danmon and TV lighting
hoist Integrator, DeSisti.
Matthew Addison, one of
Stage Electrics’ senior technical
project managers, lead the
team delivering the project and
gives some perspective on the
scale of their works: “Within the
studios, we have been the lead
trade. We’ve performed a full
electrical installation in each,
including production lighting
power, control, as well as the
general power and lighting.
Looking around the spaces, the
only things we didn’t supply
were the tension grid, the self-
climbing hoists, the duct work
and the seating. Within Studios
2 and 3, we’ve also provided
a comprehensive production
sound, video and comms
infrastructure to allow these
spaces to function as theatrical
venues as well as TV studios.
“Stepping outside the
studios, we have also supplied
and installed an RCF paging
and public address system
which covers the foyer,
brasserie, back of house areas
and the dressing rooms. OnBy the Riverside
LSi charts the rebirth of a fi lm and broadcast icon...
B Above: Riverside Studios in
Hammersmith has produced
many classic British fi lms and
TV shows over the years and
continues to do so thanks to
a recent revamp
C Facing page: Stage Electrics has
suppled and installed specialist
production lighting and AV
infrastructure throughout the
new building