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from 2029?
Yoo Capital is a privately-held real estate investment firm founded in 2010, based in London. They focus on large-scale projects across the UK, especially in London, and have invested over £2bn in various schemes. They are known particularly for developing spaces that support the arts, creative industries and hospitality sectors.
In April 2023 they announced plans for one of the firm’s most ambitious developments to date: Camden Film Quarter. According to their website:
Working with Camden Council, and consulting with local residents, local businesses and community groups at every stage of the project, Yoo Capital’s vision is to build on the success of the British creative industries by providing vital space for the sector to grow in central London and by attracting world-class creative talent to the capital.
In October 2025 architects SPPARC revealed their plans for the new scheme. The redevelopment of the land to the west of Kentish Town, which currently houses the Holmes Road Depot and the Regis Road Recycling Centre, will deliver a ‘Creative Quarter’ – a hub for film, creative and cultural industries, providing thousands of jobs. The masterplan also outlines proposals for more than 1,000 mixed tenure homes, with Yoo Capital stating that 50 per cent of the housing will be affordable. The quarter will be located to the north of Regis Road, opening up an underused site and improving access to the area through a new network of pedestrian and cycle paths, which will run through additional parks and green spaces. A new cycle bridge crossing the railway line will shorten the journey between Kentish Town and Hampstead Heath.
image thanks to Camden Film Quarter
Initially, stories in local newspapers stated that there would be 11 sound stages while later reports quoted architect Trevor Morriss who said that there needed to be 8 sound stages – each of ‘20,000 square metres’. Frankly, that area cannot possibly be correct so I think he probably said 20,000 square feet, which is a much more normal size for a sound stage. In any case, they will be stacked above each other, allowing campus space to be maximised. There will also be post production suites, editing facilities and ‘creative collaboration spaces’.
Curiously, press reports in the summer of 2026 continued to quote 11 stages – and it is also mentioned in various places on the studio website – but the illustrations indicate that 8 stages are planned. Very confusing.
The residential area sits adjacent to the production stages and is planned to include galleries, shops, restaurants and leisure facilities. The architects claim that residents will be protected from the noise of film-making by ‘cutting-edge’ sound insulation technology. To be fair, Riverside studios in Hammersmith have luxury flats built on top of the TV studios and the sound insulation there is so good that very loud music can be performed without disturbing the neighbours.
‘A masonry façade will feature origami-style outdents that react in reverse to the indent sound cushioning on the interiors of six upper-level sound stages’, said the company. The facility will be easily scalable to meet the evolving demands of a broad range of production needs across film, TV and digital media. They claim that these studios will be the first built on multi levels in Europe – although readers of this website will know that Lime Grove Studios beat them to that distinction back in 1932.
According to the developers, the city centre location aims to challenge ‘the status quo of film studios as industrial sheds in remote locations.’ The intention is that the people working in the studios will travel on foot, via public transport. (Does that include actors, execs, producers, directors and heads of department I wonder?) To be fair, many A-list actors like to stay at hotels like the Dorchester so these studios would indeed involve a much shorter journey by limousine.
Although it is to be hoped that many local people will find employment at the studios, the reality is that the majority of crew members working in the industry are freelance and are based to the west of London. They need to be able to get to work within a drive of about an hour, so many live in proximity to Pinewood, Shepperton, WB Leavesden, Elstree and Bray (and, soon, Marlow). Some may find it convenient to travel into central London via train and tube but I fear that many won’t fancy it, if there is work available closer to home. It would be a much longer journey from, say, Maidenhead, to these studios if you add the time taken to drive to the station and find parking.
One assumes that the architects will have taken into account deliveries of scenery, props, costumes, lights, grip gear, rigging gear etc. There will need to be plenty of space for large trucks and vans to park and unload – especially if all 8 stages are in use. I have not seen any detailed drawings but one hopes the sound stages will be serviced by several very large, extremely reliable lifts (elevators).
In all the various reports about this scheme, I can find little mention of workshops. All the successful film studios west of London, including Pinewood, Shepperton, Leavesden, Shinfield, Sky Elstree, Longcross, Bray etc. have a similar area of workshop space to sound stage space. Workshops are used to build scenery, make props, make and store costumes, create special effects, store and maintain lighting kit, store and prepare rigging gear, act as dressing rooms and holding areas for background artists (extras) etc. These would all provide much needed jobs for local people who might otherwise not consider that the film industry had anything to offer them employment-wise. Also, this is a significant factor when a production company is choosing a studio in which to make their film or TV drama. According to the studio website there will be:
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30,000 sq ft of production support space, including offices, workshops, fabrication areas, editing suites, wardrobe departments, special effects facilities and sound recording studios supporting large-scale sound stages designed for modern film and streaming productions.
That doesn’t seem like much workshop space to me if it includes all those other things.
Two film and television schools are proposed within an on-site education hub facing a new park. This includes a new home for the London Screen Academy, a specialist sixth form college established in 2019 that offers vocational and academic courses for students aged 16 to 19 pursuing careers in film and television production. The National Film and Television School is also planning to have a base here. Their HQ is in Beaconsfield so having another campus within central London will make it much easier for many students to travel to attend courses. This is certainly to be welcomed. I wonder if these film schools are where the other 3 stages will be located?
According to press reports, the plans include a Museum of Film & Television as well as studio tours – one assumes when no filming is taking place.
On November 17th 2025, TVB Europe reported that the developer had submitted detailed plans for permission. The vision for Camden Film Quarter was adopted by Camden Council as part of the Regis Road Area Guidance in March 2025 so the council appeared to be welcoming this proposal. Examination of the plans by local councillors took place in the first half of 2026 and planning permission was narrowly granted in June with a majority of 6 to 5 councillors.
It is worth mentioning that there does seem to be a considerable level of opposition from many residents. Local groups have objected to its scale, environmental impact, potential disruption caused during construction and fire safety concerns. The Green Party, the council’s opposition, described the scheme as a “monstrosity”. The area is currently occupied by a recycling plant, which will have to be relocated to another site in the borough. Inevitably, people are also questioning how genuinely affordable the ‘affordable’ housing will be and what will happen to the small businesses currently based in the area.
I confess I do wonder at the wisdom of embarking on such an ambitious scheme, when there is so much competition from other well-established film studios to the west of London. It’s worth noting that the superbly designed and equipped Eastbrook Studios in Dagenham have struggled to attract major film and high end TV productions since opening in January 2025. Even Shadowbox Studios near Reading are not as busy as I’m sure they would have liked, despite being superbly equipped. Some have suggested they are too far outside the west London cluster – even though they are next to the M4 and easily reached by car.
Before these stages in Camden are available there will be additional competition from Marlow Studios, Sky Elstree North, Fairbanks Studios and a few others planning expansion. The film and high end TV industry is currently (2026) fairly busy but not showing signs of the rapid expansion of a few years ago and there seem to be empty sound stages at several studio centres at the moment. I wish these studios well but am concerned that the demand they predict might not be quite as they hope when they open.
If work begins later in 2026, we might expect the facilities to be available from around 2029/2030.