Roath Lock during construction

Roath Lock^[1] is a television production facility in the Porth Teigr area of Cardiff Bay.

The studios house BBC drama productions including Doctor Who, Casualty and Pobol y Cwm. The centre topped out on 20 February 2011 and filming for such productions commenced in autumn of the same year.^[2]

The facility is located on a development site known as Porth Teigr, which also includes a proposed 40,000sq ft digital media centre.^[3]

The facility has 500 to 600 people working on site.^[4]

Design[link]

The successful planning application sought permission for a 300m long, 20,000 square metre building housing studios and offices with a distinctive façade and repeating motifs. It will also have a gothic-style entrance inspired by some of William Burges’ designs at Cardiff Castle and Castell Coch. The planning application showed the building would face the National Assembly’s Tŷ Hywel building and the Atradius building across the water of Roath Basin.^[5]

Construction[link]

The 175,000 square foot of HD-ready studios were constructed and fitted out within 13 months, marking the quickest BBC build of its size ever.^[4]

A £2.5m bridge linking the drama village to Cardiff Bay has been lifted into place. The bridge was broken down into 12 pieces to allow transportation to Cardiff Bay from where it was manufactured in nearby Newport.

Production[link]

The development has brought under one roof the production of shows formerly filmed in Cardiff's Broadcasting House, at Upper Boat Studios near Pontypridd, and in Bristol.^[5]

Programmes confirmed to be produced at the studios include:

• Doctor Who^[6]
• Casualty^[6]
• Pobol y Cwm^[6] (for S4C)
• Upstairs Downstairs^[7]

After the studios, offices and external filming lots were fully fitted out, filming for Pobol y Cwm and Casualty began in autumn 2011. Doctor Who is to move to the 170,000 sq ft (15,800 sq m) site in 2012. The Sarah Jane Adventures was also scheduled to move to the facility in 2012, but future production of the series was halted in April 2011 due to the death of lead actress Elisabeth Sladen and will no longer continue.^[8] The village is part of the BBC's commitment to double television network production from Cardiff by 2016.^[6]

Surrounding development[link]

Roath Basin (nearest), Roath Dock (above) with the channel to Queen Alexandra Dock (centre right).

Roath Basin is the largest single remaining undeveloped site in Cardiff Bay. It consists of approximately 27 acres and has an outline planning permission for 1,000 new homes and 100,000 sq m of commercial floor space. Igloo Regeneration, which is an investment fund managed by Aviva Investments, was selected by the Assembly Government as the Development Partner for the project.

Investment of £8.5 million is needed to provide a road connection through the site providing both private and public transport from Pierhead Street through to the Norwegian Church, where a new bridge will need to be constructed over the existing lock-entrance to the dock.

The project comprises two distinct, but inter-dependent, components; the regeneration of the currently derelict, former dock side land at Roath Basin would be commenced by Assembly Government investment into the site infrastructure, and the BBC Drama Village, which would total some 170,000 sq ft (16,000 m²) of television studios and ancillary accommodation, as well as a new office building, which could be operated as a "Digital Media Centre" where a range of BBC supply-chain companies and existing Welsh-based Creative Industry Sector businesses would be able to be accommodated.^[9]

Transport links[link]

The building was supposed to be served by the baycar service operated by Cardiff Bus, running every 10 minutes to Cardiff Bay and the City Centre, however, due to objections from the BBC, the extension to the service has been cancelled.

See also[link]

	BBC portal
	Wales portal

• Broadcasting House (Cardiff)
• BBC Wales
• Media in Cardiff

References[link]

1. ^ | BBC Wales drama village name unveiled as Roath Lock
2. ^ BBC News | BBC Wales Drama village's first phase completed
3. ^ Wales Online | Tiger Bay inspires name for BBC site
4. ^ ^{a b} Roath Lock official website
5. ^ ^{a b} Wales Online | BBC’s drama village would bring TV shows to Cardiff Bay
6. ^ ^{a b c d} BBC News | Work starts on BBC Wales drama village in Cardiff Bay
7. ^ WalesOnline | Cardiff Bay Drama Village ‘new home for Upstairs Downstairs’
8. ^ "The Sarah Jane Adventures, 04th May 2011". BBC website. 2011-05-04. http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/dw/news/bulletin_110504_03/The_Sarah_Jane_Adventures. Retrieved 2011-05-04. 
9. ^ Welsh Assembly Government | Proposed BBC Drama Village at Media Capital, Roath Basin

External links[link]

• Roath Lock Studios
• BBC Wales at BBC Online
• BBC Cymru at BBC Online

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Coordinates: 51°27′46″N 3°09′23″W / 51.4627°N 3.1565°W / 51.4627; -3.1565

Roath Brook flowing through Roath Park in the snow

Roath (Welsh: Y Rhath) is a district in the east/north-east of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales.

It lies just east/north east of the city centre, stretching from Adamsdown in the south to Roath Park in the north. Roath contains the Plasnewydd electoral ward. The name is believed to originate from Irish ráth, 'fort'. Alternatively, it could derive from the name given to the Roman settlement in Cardiff, Ratostabius.

Its main shopping streets are Albany Road, City Road, and Wellfield Road. It is characterised by its several tree-lined avenues and Victorian era terraced streets. Roath houses a very diverse population including a large number of students, being very close to the main university campuses, a large ethnic minority population and many young professionals. Parts of Roath are among the most affluent districts of Cardiff, although subdivision of the large Victorian properties is starting to occur in the areas at the south end of the district.

Its close proximity to the city centre and large number of local amenities makes it known for its very strong sense of community, encouraged largely due to the parks, road layouts, churches, and local post offices and newsagents, therefore Roath a very popular area to live. There are a number of restaurants and public houses, a variety of shops, an outdoor tennis centre and the famous Roath Park making it one of the greenest areas in Cardiff.

Roath contains the Church of St Margaret of Antioch, built in 1870 on the site of an earlier Norman chapel and the new Gothic revival church. Designed by Llandaff architect John Prichard on a Greek Cross plan, the latter was financed totally by the third Marquess of Bute, in spite of his conversion to Catholicism in 1868. Inside is an opulent mausoleum housing tombs of nine members of the Bute family, including the First Marquess and his wives. The tower of St Margaret's was finally completed in 1926.

Roath court, a Georgian era manor house, is also found near Saint Margaret's Church.

Amenities[link]

• Cardiff University, Engineering Building
• Roath Library
• Monumental Inscriptions for St. Margarets^[1]
• Mackintosh Sports Institute (formerly Plasnewydd)
• The Gate,^[2] arts centre
• James Summers Funeral Home, Roath Court
• Shah Jalal Mosque, Crwys Road (formerly Capel Crwys)
• Trinity Methodist Church
• St. Martin's Church, Albany Road^[3]
• Hodges' Residence and the Dewmisters Crib
• St. Edward's Church, Blenheim Road^[4]
• Roath Park
• St. Peters RFC

Notable people[link]

• William Cope, 1st Baron Cope, politician and international rugby player
• Lionel Fanthorpe
• Boyd Clack Writer, actor and playwright
• Brian Hibbard Musician

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Roath

• RoathCardiff.net, Community news and information about Roath in Cardiff
• Geograph.co.uk, photos of Roath and surrounding area
• Roathcardiff.com, History and photos of Roath
• Madeinroath.com, Arts festival and community project in Roath

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Coordinates: 51°29′28″N 3°09′38″W / 51.49111°N 3.16056°W / 51.49111; -3.16056