1986 – 1990
Strictly speaking, this ‘studio’ should not be included on the website as it wasn’t a studio at all but a location purely for one drama series – The Bill. However, a couple of people have asked me why it isn’t listed so I’ve decided to add it. Perhaps surprisingly, considering the enduring popularity of the series, there isn’t much detailed information out there about this facility so please send me any more info or photos if you worked on the show.
The Bill was a spinoff from a single drama made by Thames called Woodentop, written by Geoff McQueen, that was broadcast in August 1983. The series began as a single 60 minute episode once a week from October 1984. From 1988, the show changed to two 30 min episodes a week. Originally The Bill was based in some buildings in Wapping, close to the News International HQ. Unfortunately, in the winter of 1985/86 there was an industrial dispute that caused serious disruption around that area. The actors in police uniform became targets for the strikers so production had to be abandoned and a new base was sought. This was in Barlby Road, west London, near Ladbroke Grove. Actually, strictly speaking the building is in Dalgarno Gardens, but everyone refers to the location as Barlby Road.
The building they occupied had an interesting history. The area was originally developed in 1903 to manufacture Talbot cars and was owned by the Earl of Shrewsbury. The vehicles were made in factory units behind impressively grand office buildings facing the road. The company was later taken over by the Rootes Group, who also made Hillman, Humber and Sunbeam cars. During the Second World War, Merlin aircraft engines were manufactured here.
Central to the office buildings along Barlby Road is the grand edifice of Ladbroke Hall, currently a vibrant arts centre, but to its left is a long building originally containing offices. This is the unit that Thames took over in 1986, along with part of the factory behind it.
The facility had previously been used as a record distribution depot. Thames converted the building into a police station on the ground floor, with production offices and dressing rooms on the first floor. Part of the factory was used as workshops, the canteen and for prop and costume storage.
Around the same time, Lee Lighting also took over a large part of the factory as their HQ for lighting hire, which was handy for any kit that was required at short notice by The Bill.
image thanks to Google Maps
The way The Bill was shot represented a technological revolution at the time. Rather than using 16mm film which was the norm for most TV drama on location, they used lightweight video cameras – mostly hand-held. Lighting was naturalistic, using the practical fittings in the set supplemented by a few lightweight fixtures. Two cameras were used, which speeded up the time it took to record a scene. These were then quickly edited using Avid, which was a relatively new piece of kit at the time. The look of the show was intended to be semi-documentary, as though the cameras were following real police officers on duty. Much of it was shot on location using a small unmarked van containing VT recorders and camera racking but the intention was that the ‘studio’ sequences should look no different from the location scenes. To be fair, EastEnders also employed similar methods from 1985 using lightweight video cameras on location and on the back lot but their interiors were shot more traditionally, using studio cameras in multi-camera studios.
The Bill was not here for very long – in 1989 the freeholders of the site decided to redevelop it for housing so they had to leave. They moved to a wine warehouse in Merton in March 1990 until the show was axed in 2010. Those studios became Wimbledon Studios, which are covered on the Independent TV Studios page.
The building formally used by The Bill still stands and contains flats. It is known as Clement House. The factory units were all demolished and became a large housing estate.
