Drama drama

Closing 6Music. Closing The BBC Singers. This year's BBC banana skin ? Worrying Archers fans about their commitment to the programme. 

Yesterday, the BBC confirmed it has shelved plans to build a bespoke drama studio in The Tea Factory, Digbeth, ahead of a planned move there for the production team in 2027/28. 

The Archers started in 1951 in the BBC's Broad Street studios, then moved to Pebble Mill. It now comes from a grand drama studio in The Mailbox, only used by The Archers. To save money, the actors are only assembled for eight/nine days a month, to record a month's worth of episodes.  All the kit stays there - the Aga and key doorbells were transferred from Pebble Mill. There are live and dead areas, and compartments for rooms; a staircase with and without carpet; and the old ironing board that doubles for steel farm gates closing. The small window that might have allowed visitors a peek at the actors has been covered.

How have they got into this pickle ? Space at The Tea Factory can't be the issue; in September, the BBC said there was room for Birmingham City University to set up a journalism course. The basic building fit-out is complete, so someone is trimming the budget for the technical fit-out.  The 'owners' of The Archers are 'in-house'; like News, the Arts and Sciences, the programme avoided transfer to the warm, commercial arms of BBC Studios in 2024.  They might have been better off with the money people; The Archers is number 3 in the rankings of top BBC programmes downloaded around the world, behind Newscast and The Global News podcast. 

There are options; assemble the cast of actors (does any of them do a Midlands accent) at Paddington rather than Euston, for a train trip to Cardiff Central Square, where The Dylan Thomas Radio Studio is on the groundfloor of New Broadcasting House. That's about 90 miles from The Old Bull Inn in Inkberrow, inspiration for The Archer's Bull; the journey from the Tea Factory to Inkberrow is around 25 miles. 

Another option: Get BBC Studioworks to develop a contract to lease back the drama studio at The MailBox - surely a new tenant would rather raise revenue than pay for some very expensive demolition work ?

The third option: ease the specification for the studio at Digbeth.  I presume that argument has already been lost.