Elstree Studios

Elstree Studios
Elstree Studios at Shenley Road, Borehamwood
Location within Hertfordshire
General information
Type	Film and television studios
Country	United Kingdom
Coordinates	51°39′31″N 0°16′33″W / 51.6587°N 0.2758°W / 51.6587; -0.2758Coordinates: 51°39′31″N 0°16′33″W / 51.6587°N 0.2758°W / 51.6587; -0.2758
Website
Official website for the Shenley Rd facility

Elstree Studios is a generic term which can refer to several current and defunct British film studios and television studios based in or around the towns of Borehamwood and Elstree in Hertfordshire. Studios have been located here since film production began in the area during 1914.

While some facilities have been built and demolished since then, two sites remain in use in Borehamwood; Elstree Studios on Shenley Road and the BBC Elstree Centre on Clarendon Road.

Despite being called "Elstree Studios", only one studio has ever been located in Elstree itself, the remainder residing in the adjacent town of Borehamwood. When the studios were being established, Elstree was significantly larger than Borehamwood. Nowadays, Borehamwood is the larger, but the old names have remained in use.

The civil parish that contains the town was called "Elstree". The local railway station was originally known as "Elstree" (nowadays, it is called "Elstree & Borehamwood"). The local telephone exchange was also called "Elstree".

The Neptune Film Company opened the first studios in Borehamwood in 1914. Production ceased during 1917 and the studio was sold to the Ideal Film Company who used the site up until 1924.

During 1928, the studio was sold to Ludwig Blattner who connected it to the electricity mains and introduced a German system of sound recording. The Blattner Studio was leased to Joe Rock Productions during 1934, which purchased the site two years later. Rock Productions built four new large stages. The site was again sold, and taken over by the British National Films Company between 1939 and 1948, although during this period a large portion of the studio was taken over by the British government for war work.

During 1953, the studios were bought by Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., mainly for television production and were later sold to Lew Grade's Associated Television (ATV). The Clarendon Road centre became the main television production hub for ATV. The smaller Studios A and B were used for schools and sitcoms, while Studio C was a drama studio. Studio D, with permanent audience seating, was used for light entertainment programmes such as the ATV Morecambe and Wise series (Two of a Kind, 1961–68) and The Muppet Show (1976–81).