BBC Wales headquarters building

The BBC Wales Headquarters building (Welsh: Pencadlys BBC Cymru) is a television studio and office in Central Square, Cardiff.[7] It is operated by BBC Cymru Wales, and also serves as a base for S4C.[8]

For the current BBC Wales headquarters, see Broadcasting House, Cardiff.

BBC Wales Headquarters
Pencadlys BBC Cymru
July 2019
BBC Wales
BBC Wales headquarters building location
Alternative namesNew Broadcasting House
General information
StatusOpen
TypeBroadcasting office
Architectural styleHigh-tech architecture
LocationCardiff city centre
Address3 Central Square, Cardiff CF10 1FP
Town or cityCardiff
CountryWales
Coordinates51.476268°N 3.179891°W / 51.476268; -3.179891
Current tenantsBBC Cymru Wales
S4C
Mixed retail
Construction started7 December 2015 [1]
Completed1 August 2019
OpenedOctober 2019[2]
Cost£100,000,000[2]
ClientBBC Cymru Wales
OwnerRightacres Property Company Ltd[2]
LandlordRightacres[2]
Technical details
Floor count5[3]
Floor area14,454 m2 (155,580 sq ft)[4]
Design and construction
ArchitectGerard Evenden[5]
Architecture firmFoster + Partners[6]
DeveloperRightacres Property[3]
EngineerArup[2]
Structural engineerArup[1]
Civil engineerAECOM[2]
Other designersID:SR Sheppard Robson (interior)[2]
Quantity surveyorCurrie & Brown[2]
Main contractorISG UK Construction West[1]
Website
centralsquarecardiff.co.uk

The £120 million building replaced the BBC Cymru Wales Broadcasting House in Llandaff,[6] when 1,000 production and support staff began moving into the new facility in October 2019.[8] The building is officially located at 3 Central Square, but has also been referred to as BBC New Broadcasting House.[9]

Design and construction

Construction started in December 2015[1] on the site of the former Cardiff Central bus station.[10] The building will be half the size of the current Broadcasting House in Llandaff.[10] The BBC received the keys to the building in April 2018, after which the headquarters was fitted out with new technology[11] before staff moved in, around October 2019.[4]

The building has been designed by Foster + Partners,[6] with the interior design by Overbury and Sheppard Robson.[12] There will be four floors providing office, studio and production space.[1] There will be desk space for 750 staff, on the basis that not all the 1,200 staff will be on site at the same time.[12]

The internal size of Central Square over several floors is 155,582 square feet (14,454.0 m2), making it nearly 1.5 times the area of the Millennium Stadium pitch.[13]

It is envisaged that an estimated 50,000 people will visit the new building every year.[10] The BBC agreed a 20-year lease on the building at an annual rent of around £25 per square foot per annum with Rightacres Property Company, the developer of the Central Square.[14]

Images during and after construction
  • January 2017
  • April 2017
  • October 2017
  • July 2019
  • September 2019

See also

Notes
  1. "ISG named as main contractor for BBC Wales new headquarters at Central Square scheme in the centre of Cardiff". Wales Online. 18 November 2015. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  2. Wilson, Rob. "BBC Wales moves into Sheppard Robson-designed broadcast facility". Architects Journal.
  3. Chris Pyke (6 December 2016). "The new BBC HQ is already changing the cityscape of Cardiff". Wales Online. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
  4. "BBC Wales staff start move to new Cardiff headquarters". BBC. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
  5. Sion Barry (26 June 2015). "Plans revealed for one of Wales's most ambitious development projects at Central Square scheme in Cardiff". Wales Online. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  6. "First images inside BBC Wales' new £120m headquarters in the centre of Cardiff". Wales Online. 7 July 2017. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  7. "Central Square & BBC Wales Headquarters Building (Sept 14)". Design Commission for Wales. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  8. "BBC Wales staff start move to new headquarters". 21 October 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  9. "IP at the Core - Setting the Standards for Live IP Production - BBC R&D". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  10. Huw Thomas (10 June 2014). "BBC Wales HQ at bus station site". BBC News. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  11. "BBC get keys to new Cardiff Central Square HQ". Property Magazine International. 18 April 2018.
  12. Sion Barry (25 April 2018). "Inside the new £100m BBC Cymru Wales headquarters". Wales Online. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  13. Wilson, Rob. "BBC Wales moves into Sheppard Robson-designed broadcast facility". Architects Journal. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  14. "What the relocation of BBC Wales' headquarters means for Cardiff city centre". Walesonline. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
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