new stages from 2021
Stage 50 is a company that began advertising its product towards the end of 2020. They marketed a system that enabled a fully equipped and soundproofed sound stage to be erected in only 4 months. The stages could be dismantled and re-erected on another site after a few months or years if required but inside they have no appearance of being at all temporary.
This ingenious system was certainly very welcome as the industry is desperate for suitable facilities to film the considerable number of TV dramas that are currently being made in the UK. The name ‘Stage 50’ is because they anticipated erecting at least 50 sound stages over a number of years.
image thanks to Farnborough International Studios
The first site to open using these stages was at Farnborough. A similar number of miles from London down the M3 as Shinfield Studios are down the M4, these studios are a very useful addition to the facilities in and around the capital. There are 2 stages of 22,000 sq ft each as well as 20,000 sq ft of workshops, 10,000 sq ft of office space and 50,000 sq ft of unit base and parking.
Credits for Farnborough include Mission Impossible – Fallout, Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw, and Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast built an exterior set here and used Hall 5 for some interiors in 2020. Hartswood Films were the first clients in the new stages here, moving in during June 2021. You may recall that this company has an impressive CV of TV dramas including Sherlock, Dracula and Jekyll and, some years ago, the sitcoms Coupling and Men Behaving Badly. Other productions made at Farnborough include 3 Body Problem for Netflix, The Devil’s Hour for Amazon and Inside Man for BBC and Netflix. Series 2 of The Devil’s Hour began filming in February 2023. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire also filmed some scenes here in 2023 (as well as at Winnersh and Shinfield Studios.) I visited in October 2024 and both stages had sets in them for forthcoming productions.
Stage 50 also had 2 stages at Winnersh Triangle and 1 at Wycombe Air Park. Both sites had plans to expand.
Unfortunately, the US writers and actors strikes during 2023 severely affected the cash flow of Stage 50, with no income from bookings for many months. Sadly, the company was taken into administration on 2nd April 2024. However, the stages and workshops at Farnborough were sold to the landlord of the site – Farnborough International Ltd. – in March 2024.
The studios are now trading under the name Farnborough International Studios. As well as the ex-Stage 50 facilities, they are offering exhibition halls that were built for the biennial International Air Show which also represent very useful spaces for filming. Hall 1 has 132,740 sq ft of pillarless space and Hall 5 offers 33,906 sq ft of pillarless space, plus 1,076,391 sq ft of external space. There are also a number of internal locations that have been used as locations for offices or airport terminals. Farnborough International has invested heavily into the site’s infrastructure to support the demand from production companies. The site boasts 27,000 sq ft workshops and 50,000 sq ft unit base and parking, with ample power supply for major productions. A separate block close to the stages contains 11,000 sq ft of production offices and wardrobe rooms.
The facilities here are excellent and have very good communications by road and rail. Obviously, flying in major stars direct to the studios is also possible. I visited the studios in October 2024 and was very impressed by what I saw. The stages look very permanent inside – with well-designed grids, aircon and plenty of power. I was assured that the soundproofing is excellent and filming is not disturbed by aircraft noise. Both stages were busy, with sets being built in each. Hall 5 also had a set in it, that I was not able to see but I did see Hall 1, which was preparing for an event and is vast! I also saw the entrance area which has been used as an airport terminal in a blockbuster movie.
The studios are hoping to attract independent films and TV dramas as well as major productions that need a base close to London where they can shoot some interiors. The studio manager also has experience of working in a large multicamera studio (Fountain) and would welcome TV entertainment shows too. There is plenty of parking for audiences and space for OB vehicles with easy cable access to the stages.
