Entertainment giants Netflix, Amazon and the BBC have filmed there
The Bottle Yard Studios in Hengrove(Image: Bristol City Council)
The aborted sale of world-famous Bottle Yard Studios cost Bristol City Council taxpayers £430,000, it has been revealed.
The authority wanted to privatise the South West’s biggest TV and film studios, which it owns, but the idea collapsed in July when a three-month period for negotiations with the preferred bidder to take it on expired.
Actors union Equity opposed the controversial sell-off of the production centre, which has been used by many of the globe’s biggest small- and big-screen entertainment industries, including the BBC, ITV, Amazon, Netflix and Paramount.
Opposition Cllr Tim Rippington (Labour, Brislington East) submitted a question to a recent meeting of the council’s member forum asking how much City Hall had spent on the “failed attempt” to sell the studios in Hengrove, South Bristol.
In a written reply, the council said: “The project to review the future of the studios has been within the council’s transformation programme since 2023 (when this approach was agreed by the previous [Labour] administration) and has an approved project budget.
“The costs associated with the project are as follows and within budget:
“Total project spend to date (since Jan 23) = £430K
“Officer time is accounted for within the overall project resource [and] includes project management, legal, finance and HR.
“Other officer time is unaccounted for as it is considered to be within their roles.”
After the meeting, Cllr Rippington said: “The Bottle Yard Studios is the crown jewel of Bristol’s creative industries, having recently won the title of the most sustainable TV and film studio in the world.
“The former Labour administration considered options for the future of the Bottle Yard Studios, including a potential joint ownership model that would raise private investment whilst ensuring the city has a stake in its future.
“Whilst my preference is for full public ownership, this option was worth consideration.
“It did not decide to push ahead with a total privatisation, as the Green-led administration has done.
“The Greens’ pursuit of full privatisation, which we opposed from the start, racked up the bulk of these costs – the taxpayer will foot the bill.
“£430,000 would have made a world of difference to our local libraries, street cleaning teams, or local authority schools.
“Fortunately the Greens’ privatisation project seems dead.
“Let’s hope they don’t resurrect it.”
Bristol City Council leader and strategy and resources committee chairman Cllr Tony Dyer (Green, Southville) said: “I’m grateful to officers who have, since 2023, engaged with and undertaken the detailed process of taking the studios to market and negotiated on a potential sale with bidders.
“This was a necessarily lengthy process to ensure all possible factors were considered and that an extensive level of due diligence was carried out throughout.
“Since we failed to reach an agreement on sale in the summer, officers have been reviewing the options for maximising the value and benefits of the studios.
“Further discussion and consideration of the options will take place at committee at a later date.
“Our aim remains the same – to secure a sustainable future for the studios and the opportunity to grow into its huge potential.”