Following a meeting with Bristol City Council, we are calling for a pause on the decision to sell Bottle Yard Studios to allow for transparency, scrutiny and accountability.
Today (Friday 11 October) Equity officials met with Alex Hearn, Director Economy of Place at Bristol City Council, to discuss the proposal to sell off Bottle Yard Studios. The meeting involved Equity President - and Bristol resident - Lynda Rooke, South West official Simon Curtis, and Equity SW Councillor Rachael Fagan, and was secured following Equity’s calls for public scrutiny and consultation with workforce representatives. While today’s engagement was welcome, it left many questions unanswered, and Equity is calling on Councillors to vote to pause the decision on the sale when they meet on Monday 14 October.
Rachael Fagan, Bristol-based actress and Equity South West Councillor (elected member serving on the union’s governing body), said: “It was positive to meet with Bristol City Council this afternoon and we welcome the engagement, but the meeting confirmed many of our fears that proper scrutiny and accountability have not been applied to the decision around Bottle Yard Studios.
“Bristol prides itself as a designated UNESCO City of Film, but that status – and the importance of job creation for local and wider British productions is not being considered. This is a culturally important local asset that the Council chose to buy and invest in.
“The current course of action feels like a fire sale and one that would rob Bristol of a valued asset of both cultural and economic significance. It’s a decision that affects thousands of our workers and it impacts jobs in the city so we’re asking Councillors to pause and ensure all options are considered to protect jobs and the wider cultural sector.”
In the meeting with Alex Hearn, he confirmed that Bottle Yard Studios makes a profit and brings a return to the council. It also became clear that many of the financial workings, reports and strategy documents have not been available to the public, and possibly even elected Councillors in the current administration. This includes reports exploring alternative options which were considered in January 2023.
The nine-member strong Strategy and Resources Policy Committee meets on Monday afternoon, 14 October. Equity is calling for transparency, scrutiny, accountability in relation to decisions over any sale of Bottle Yard Studios and calls on the Councillors of that committee to vote to pause the sale decision until full information and all options are considered, including the long-term impacts of any sale on our members in Bristol and the wider film and TV industry.
In the last 24 hours, Equity members have sent over 800 emails to Bristol City Councillors calling for the sale to be delayed, following the launch of a campaign ask at lunchtime on Thursday 10 October.
Bristol’s ‘premier film studio’ is currently owned by Bristol City Council and has hosted a wide range of film and TV productions, including Sherlock, Poldark, Hellboy, Crystal Maze, Broadchurch, and more. It is the only UK film studio to be owned by a local authority.
Email Bristol Councillors to delay the sale of Bottle Yard Studios
