Judi Dench joins calls by The Archers cast to keep show in Birmingham
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The cast and crew behind The Archers, including the one-time guest star Judi Dench, have written to the BBC director general urging him to keep the recording of the Radio 4 drama in Birmingham. It emerged this week that the corporation was planning to stop recording the rural community soap opera in the city for the first time in the show’s 75-year history, after it scrapped plans for a radio drama studio. Staff were informed last week that the BBC, as part of its £500m cost-cutting drive, had ditched plans to build a bespoke studio at the Tea Factory in Digbeth, the corporation’s new Birmingham headquarters. Production staff will still move to the Tea Factory, but the broadcaster is looking for an existing studio where the show could be recorded. The West Midlands is included in the search, but there is no guarantee The Archers will be recorded in the region. Actors rehearse an episode of The Archers in the BBC studios in Birmingham.
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Dame Judi Dench joins call to keep Archers in Birmingham - BBC
23 hours agoRachael LewisWest Midlands Press AssociationDame Judi Dench is among more than 100 current and former cast and crew members calling on the BBC to keep The Archers in BirminghamMore than 100 current and former cast and crew members of The Archers, including Dame Judi Dench, have called on the BBC to keep the programme in Birmingham. Supporters say recording the drama elsewhere could affect its quality and future. The BBC says the move is part of wider cost-saving measures and alternative options are being explored. In a letter to director general Matt Brittin, actors, writers, directors and sound engineers argued that moving recordings away from the Midlands would have a "tangible impact" on the programme. The letter compares the prospect to "Coronation Street leaving the north-west, or EastEnders leaving the south-east", adding that it risks "ripping out the heart of Ambridge". Supporters say recording The Archers outside the Midlands could affect the programme's futureSignatories said Birmingham had been central to the show's identity since it began and warned that separating cast and production teams could affect the way the programme is made.
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