The Lime Grove Story (1991)

Concept and creative process

BBC Lime Grove studios in Shepherds Bush, formerly Gaumont Film Studios, had a long and distinguished history in the making and broadcasting of British TV culture. In celebration of its history BBC2 dedicated it a Summer Bank Holiday of documentaries and old programmes. The titles reflect the demise of the studios, demolished to make way for residential flats, in a typically English Bank Holiday scene on the beach. Fellow designer Steve Bonnett and his son Charlie stepped in as extras for the shoot. 3 model sand castles were made of Lime Grove in different stages of collapse. Sand from the location was used on the models to make sure they blended in on the beach. On location we built up sections of the building with sand to allow the sea to wash it away. Michael Jackson, Controller of BBC2 at the time, provided the toy vintage BBC Outside Broadcast vehicles. Fen Field created nostalgic hand-lettered 1950's caption cards to complete the retro styling.