Pebble Mill Studios was a 9 acre site based in Edgbaston, Birmingham, and opened in 1971 by Princess Anne. It contained offices, television studios, radio studios, two canteens, a post office and a garden and was responsible for shows such as The Archers, Top Gear and Gardeners’ World.
The main studio (Studio A) was the main television studio that opened with the building in 1971. The floor of the studio was 6,500 square feet making it the largest studio and it had 3 separate control rooms, a production gallery, a vision/lighting gallery and a sound control gallery. Originally this studio only housed four cameras and a back up one but in the early nineties a second back up camera was also used when the new cameras were introduced. In 1997 a refurbishment took place which meant the introduction to a whole new set of 6 main floor cameras and 2 additional back up cameras.
The second studio (Studio B) was for local news and sport and was 1,000 square feet. This studio was next to Studio A on the first floor and had a combined control gallery. Studio B was used primarily used for Midlands Today but also produced Network East and other regional programmes.
The Pebble Mill studios were originally intended to have a third drama studio (Studio C) situated next to Studio A, but this was never built, therefore to resolve this, the studios main foyer became the third studio instead. The foyer had its suspended ceiling removed and a scaffold lighting rig installed instead. The audience seating replaced the Italian marble reception desk and the interview seating was installed next to the main windows.
Pebble Mill at One was a Light Entertainment show with interviews, music and cookery, which is very similar to The One Show that is on BBC. In 1986 Pebble Mill at One ended but in 1988, Daytime Live was launched. Daytime Live was essentially the same programme as Pebble Mill at One but because it started at a different time it received a different name. In 1992, Good Morning with Anne and Nick (Anne Diamond and Nick Owen) replaced Daytime Live. This programme however needed a bit more room so a conservatory studio was built in the courtyard area for cooking demonstrations and interviews.
The daytime drama series Doctors was also made at Pebble Mill between 2000 and 2004.
In addition to the 3 television studios housed at Pebble Mill there were also an additional 7 radio studios.
Studio 1 was the main studio at Pebble Mill. It was large enough to hold a full symphony orchestra and was used for sound recording sessions, and twice a week for live broadcasts of lunchtime concerts on Radio 3. Although being a radio studio, in early years it was equipped with a basic lighting rig for the occasional television programme. However, in the 1990’s the prices to used radio studio 1 became so high that Radio 3 moved out to Adrian Boult Hall and Studio 1 became a full-time TV studio. In its final years, Studio 1 was used as a sound stage for Doctors.
Studio 2 was a large popular music studio and was where aspiring music balancers were trained. In the 1990’s it was used mainly by Radio 2 as its Midland Sessions studio and many popular musicians preformed there.
Studio 3 was Pebble Mills radio drama studio and it provided much of radio 3 & 4’s drama output; it was home of The Archers, the worlds longest running radio soap. The last archers programme from Pebble Mill was on 13th September 2004; they transferred to the Mailbox Studio at the beginning of October 2004. Attached to studio 3 was an editing suite named M3 (Midland 3), this was a mall edit suite in which The Archers, Radio 2’s Specialist music shows and Radio 4’s Midlands based features were all edited.
Studio 4 was the chassis of a studio that was never actually installed, but it did have an edit suite associated with it called M4 (Midland 4) where most of the Radio Drama was edited. This is where the first AMS Audio file DAW was used in radio.
Studio 5 was the General Purpose studio. Over the years of Pebble Mill Studios it had done every form of feature, from Woman’s Hour, to Radio 2’s Ed Stuart Show on Sunday afternoons. The studio was home to The Richard Bacon Show which went live on Saturday and Sunday nights on Radio 5 and Radio 2’s specialist popular music such shows as The Best of Jazz.
Studio 6 was not equipped or used until 1995 but then became where Radio 2’s Through the Night originated, which was presented by Janice Long, Alex Lester and Mo Dutta.
According to the floor plans of Pebble Mill Studios from 1971 there was a seventh sound studio on the first floor adjoining the local radio studios. This studio was never commissioned and became an office, and later became an electronics room for comms centre.
Being a major Studios of its time, Pebble Mill produced some very well known Television and radio series, these include:
Radio:
Women’s Hour
The Ed Stewart Show
The Richard Bacon Show
Best of Jazz
Through the Night
The Archers
News:
Midlands Today
Inside out
Points of View
Television:
Top Gear Motorsport
The Golden Oldie Picture Show
Call My Bluff
Can’t Cook, Won’t Cook
The Basil Brush Show (1970’s Version)
The Clothes Show
Gardeners World
Countryfile
To Buy or Not to Buy
Pot Black
Doctors
Doctor Who
SMart
Bodger and Badger
Abiey Humphries 