The Television Centre

Notting Hill’s neighbour to the west, White City gets its name from the intricate white buildings and waterways built for the Franco-British Exhibition of 1908. Constructed to celebrate the signing of the Entente Cordiale, the exhibition was a large public fair attracting eight million visitors, but the site fell into disrepair in 1914 – not to be used for another 20 years. In 1958, the existing ruins were demolished and building began on what was to become a factory for television and a powerhouse of creative broadcasting. Opened by The Queen in 1961, the BBC’s Television Centre immediately became a true cultural icon and landmark piece of modern architecture…and we couldn’t be happier to see it back, re-imagined as a ground-breaking, mixed-use development in West London. It’s a game changer. New show apartments in the residential development have been exquisitely designed by the RIBA Stirling Prize-winning architect Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM) with interior furnishing by renowned British designer Suzy Hoodless. These homes all sit in the existing circular Grade-II listed Helios, overlooking the gilded statue of Helios the sun god at its centre, and the newly-built Crescent. To realise the full design potential of Television Centre, AHMM director, Paul Monaghan has also handpicked a collection of Britain’s finest contemporary architects to join him in designing the most premium apartments in the scheme: The Architects’ Series. The four chosen to collaborate on this prestigious project were Coffey Architects, Haptic, Piercy&Company and Archer Humphryes. Each firm has designed its own collections of one-off apartments in a design first. While the legacy of the BBC at Television Centre continues, with three original television studios operated by BBC Studioworks now open and operational, there is certainly a feeling of change in the air. It’s good change. It’s exciting and promises boundless opportunity for local and prospective residents of west London.