Data centre proposed for stalled film studio

The owners of land where a film studio could be built want to also use the site for data centres.

Central Bedfordshire Council approved plans for the Home of Production studio, at the former quarry of Quest Pit near Stewartby, Bedfordshire, in August 2023.

Construction later stalled when the developer behind the project closed down.

Now the landowners have requested an amendment to the approved planning documents to allow them to add data centres to the site.

The newly submitted planning documents cite "the changing nature of film studio operations" as the reason for the amendment.

It went on to highlight "a need for flexibility in the range of associated facilities within a film studio campus".

The existing application, which includes film studios, sound stages and workshops, remains in place.

Landowners Quest Pit Limited declined an invitation to comment.

Expansion plans for Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, which was used to make James Bond movies, also include proposals for a "state-of-the-art data centre".

Plans to build a film studio in High Wycombe were also abandoned in 2024 with the company behind the project submitting a proposal for a data centre development instead.

Buckinghamshire Council said the project was "unlikely to progress a film studio" due to the "landscape having changed commercially".

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