UK media organisations are becoming increasingly decentralised and there is a continuing trend for such companies to move away from London. The BBC famously established a large base at BBC Salford in 2011 and Channel 4 has recently taken approximately 12,000 sq ft in Manchester – doubling its current footprint in Manchester. Channel 4 relocated to Leeds back in 2021, which is now their national headquarters.

Digbeth in Birmingham is a former industrial site that is being repurposed into a TV, film, media and tech hub, highlighting the potential of developing former industrial sites for use by creative industries. BBC MasterChef’s studios are relocating to Digbeth and the BBC has also announced plans to move its other operations in Birmingham from the Mailbox in central Birmingham to the former Typhoo tea factory in Digbeth. This is anticipated to bring £150m in investment to the area, further strengthening the city’s future as a media hub.

EG suggest that BBC Studios’ decision to base “Doctor Who” in Cardiff  generated an estimated £200m for the Welsh economy.

Media companies moving out of London and the South East will mean great opportunities for digital and creative professionals based in the regions and generate large investments into the local economies. Increasing decentralisation allows media organisations to tap into creative industries based outside London and benefit from cheaper overheads as well as helping places like Digbeth transition into a post-industrial economy.

Decentralisation is not a universal trend, however. EG also reports that the American TV giant CNBC is close to taking a new studio space in London, which it intends to make its European headquarters. It has lodged plans with the City of London to convert the ground floor and mezzanine levels of 10 Fleet Place, EC4 into a live broadcasting studio.

It may well be that UK based media companies will continue to expand into the regions to take advantage of lower costs and give themselves a competitive edge, while international media companies will continue to be drawn to the London and the South East, drawn by international transport links and the cosmopolitan atmosphere.  If that’s right, then the combination of decentralisation and continuing investment in London as an international media hub can only be positive signs for the commercial property market and the UK economy as a whole.

https://www.egi.co.uk/news/american-tv-giant-nears-deal-for-new-london-studio/