planning application refused in May 2024. An appeal and public enquiry are planned.
In 2021 a company called Dido Property Ltd announced that they were proposing a major film studio just to the east of Marlow in Buckinghamshire. Dido is apparently owned by four local entrepreneurs and arts industry professionals. The site is currently rough grassland, unsuitable for agriculture as the ground is poor quality, being a light covering of topsoil over a domestic waste tip. Previously, the area consisted of gravel pits, some of which were filled in and others flooded to form lakes. The River Thames is not far from the site.
Before that, the area was used as a prison camp in the Second World War and before that, it was part of the land belonging to Westhorpe House, which still stands just to the south of the studio site.
The proposed studios occupy an area of 56 acres with the A404 Marlow bypass on the west and the A4155 to the north. The developers also own a large field to the south, part of which is intended to become a back lot for filming and another nearby which they will landscape and open to the public. The proposals are not surprisingly being planned with the environment very much in mind.
Phase 2 of the public consultation process opened in October 2021. The planning application was formally submitted in May 2022 and validated in June. However, a decision will now not be made until May 2024 so we shouldn’t expect any of these facilities to be up and running before 2026. Once completed, Dido say they will run the studios themselves. They are looking at this as an investment in the film industry and are keen to be part of its world-beating success.
The planning application explains how the site will be laid out with stages, workshops, offices, ‘media hub’ etc. The proposal is for 18 sound stages plus a similar number of workshops, grouped in two clusters enabling a couple of major productions to be underway simultaneously. So this project is on a similar scale to Shinfield Studios – those will be fully operational by the end of 2023. They are about a half hour drive away, down the M4. In recent months, several alterations to the plans have been made in order to comply with various requests and demands.
Marlow Studios sit centrally within the main cluster of film/TV studios in the UK, with Pinewood, Shepperton, Leavesden, Elstree, Bray, Shinfield, Winnersh, Longcross, Bovingdon and Arborfield all within relatively easy access. Perhaps it is worth mentioning that since 2015, more high-end TV and blockbuster movies have been made in the UK than in California. This area west of London has become the new Hollywood and is therefore where most freelance industry professionals and supporting businesses are based. A skills and training academy linked to the local university is proposed here and in fact the National Film and Television School at Beaconsfield is only 8 miles away.
I can see that this would be a popular place to work for many film actors, directors and HoDs. Marlow itself is a very attractive old riverside town with a number of high quality restaurants, and a short distance away are Henley and Cookham, which also offer a number of top notch places to eat. Meanwhile Bray, with its two Michelin 3 star restaurants is only a quarter of an hour away. And I imagine some A-listers might choose to stay at Cliveden, which is a 12 minute drive from these studios. Heathrow Terminal 5 is only half an hour from here.
I have looked at many proposals for studios over the years and I can say that these are the best thought-out and well presented I have seen. However, a well-organised local campaign objecting to the studios on environmental, traffic and green belt grounds meant that planning permission was far from certain. Local parish councils objected to the proposals and planning officers recommended refusal. However, the plans are supported by many others including local businesses, educational establishments and people working in the film industry. At a meeting of Buckinghamshire’s Strategic Sites Committee on October 23rd 2023, the votes were split five votes in favour and five against. The committee chairman decided with his casting vote that the best course of action was to defer a final decision until the spring of 2024. In the meantime, further analyses of environmental and traffic-related issues were undertaken.
In February 2024 Marlow Studios improved the benefits to the local infrastructure including roads and bus services, pledging to spend over £20m. They also said they would increase the planting of trees to screen the buildings. James Cameron made a statement supporting the studios and said he would base his Lightstorm 3D special effects company here.
At a meeting of the Strategic Sites Committee on 30th May 2024 the application was unfortunately refused. The main objections were that certain views might be spoiled and that there might be an increase in local traffic. Inevitably, an appeal will be made and hopefully the new government will allow this important scheme to go ahead. Its importance to the British film industry and to dozens of small businesses around Buckinghamshire cannot be overstated.
In August 2024 Robert Laycock, the CEO of Marlow Studios issued the following statement:
‘I wanted to write to let you know that we will be submitting our appeal against the decision made by the Bucks Council Strategic Sites Committee in July to turn down our planning application. We are expecting a Public Inquiry, probably next year.
This next stage in the process moves us beyond seeking local agreement on our application. This time, the decision will rest with the appointed Planning Inspector whose role will be to determine the strength of our arguments. The option remains for Ministers formally to intervene, but we are confident that the Public Inquiry will allow us to address the shortcomings of the Council’s decision.
Inevitably, the appeal process is a quasi-legal one, and we will be constrained by what we are able to say in public as we lead up to the Public Inquiry. But we still want to remain engaged with our local supporters, whom we believe comprise the majority of residents in local Marlow, High Wycombe and the broader Buckinghamshire. When the Inquiry happens, we will want our friends to express their support for us as you did last time, in person and with passion.
But we also know how divisive this process has been. We remain confident that the Studios will be built and want the local community to feel part of our project. As we have always been, we are determined to build bridges and ensure that we bring as many of the local residents with us as we can, and we are always open to ideas as to how we can do this. The advantages to the local communities, in terms of jobs, economic growth, upgraded traffic infrastructure and education are – we think – compelling. If we are successful, the Film Studios will become one of Bucks’ largest employers and commercial investments. And it will cement the UK’s global role as a leader in the creative sector, and in film production. These are prizes for Bucks, and for the UK, that we think are worth fighting for.’
He issued another statement in October 2024, clarifying the situation:
The Planning Inspectorate has now confirmed that the appeal will be run as a local Public Inquiry in the early part of 2025.
This involves a Planning Inspector examining in full the basis of the decision made by Buckinghamshire Council. Legal counsel and witnesses from Buckinghamshire Council, Marlow Film Studios and any interested third-parties will contribute to the hearings. This Inquiry will take place locally. It will be an exhaustive examination of evidence and the reasons for refusal. Others can participate and provide their viewpoint. I’ll be writing separately about how you might do this. We are very mindful of the comments of all those who have raised and continue to raise questions and concerns. This is why the inquiry is such a positive way to resolve these questions in particular detail.
As you will have read, the appeal has been ‘recovered’ to be made by the Government at Ministerial Level. This means that, following the inquiry concluding, the Planning Inspector will prepare a detailed report and recommendation. This will then be forwarded to the Department of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government for a final decision by ministers.
We don’t yet know when the decision will be announced, but would think at some stage later in 2025.
Let’s hope this process is as swift and positive as it can possibly be.
