ITV Studios will invest £5m in its studio complex in Leeds to provide high definition facilities for the production of its Yorkshire soap Emmerdale, it revealed today.
The company said the revamp was about "safeguarding the future of Emmerdale". ITV reviewed the future of the Kirkstall Road site in March after announcing it would mothball Heartbeat and The Royal in March, forcing the studio division to make 192 people who worked at the Leeds complex redundant.
Emmerdale's studios and production centre will move from their home at the back of the complex on Burley Road, the site of an old car showroom, into the main ITV site in Leeds on Kirkstall Road, formerly the home of Yorkshire Television, which produced hits such as Rising Damp.
Lee Bartlett, managing director of ITV Studios, told staff today that it was hoped the upgrade would be completed by the end of 2010. "Giving this highly respected production team and cast an up-to-date, modern, purpose built facility, is key to enhancing the quality of our production many years into the future," Bartlett added.
"Few cities outside London can boast production of three hours of prime time top-rated drama every week, and this team deserves the best possible environment in which to work and operate. I'm thrilled that we have secured the funding to make this happen."
ITV operates out of six different buildings in the Kirkstall Road complex. Calendar, the regional news programme, is produced in a building adjacent to the main site and will be unaffected. Other buildings house post-production and graphics. The Burley Road site will be rented out or sold.
Claire Poyser, director of production, ITV Studios, said the revamp meant the company also has office space for other production companies.
"Our plan is to consolidate our production centre here in Leeds to fit our needs and purpose for the future. The main building re-fit means first class high-definition facilities, and there will be enough spare office space to open our doors to a broader creative community," she said. "We are actively seeking to develop potential creative partnerships with interested parties in the region. This will give Leeds something to be really proud of."
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