History
On Friday 1 April 1949, Norman Collins, the then Controller of the BBC Television Service, announced at the Television Society's annual dinner at the Waldorf Hotel that a new TV centre would be built in Shepherd's Bush. Transmissions at the time came from Alexandra Palace and Lime Grove Studios (from 1949), and had very few television transmitters. It was to be the largest television centre in the world. Riverside Studios in Hammersmith were used from 1954.
It was planned to be 6 acres (2.4 ha), but turned out to be twice as big. On 24 August 1956 the main contract was awarded by the BBC to Higgs and Hill, who also later built The London Studios (ITV) in 1972. The building was planned to cost £9m.
When it opened, the Director of BBC television was Gerald Beadle, and the first programme it broadcast was First Night with David Nixon in Studio Three.
Read more about this topic: BBC Television Centre
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