UTV Unveils Plans for World-Class Central London Broadcast Centre

As it gears up to launch four new national radio stations across the UK UTV Media (GB) today announces that it has secured additional studio and office space to create a new broadcast centre at its existing central London premises at 18 Hatfields, London, SE1.

The new broadcast centre will serve UTV as the company prepares to spearhead the biggest expansion in UK radio line-up in a generation with the new stations launching in early 2016.

The move will see current tenant First Radio Sales leaving Hatfields in June 2015 and moving into new premises.

The new stations UTV is launching are:

-              Virgin Radio, an all-new rock and pop station operated and owned by UTV and drawing on an iconic brand and radio heritage thanks to exclusive 12 year licence arrangements with Richard Branson’s Virgin Group

-              talkRADIO - a fresh new speech station for a digital generation spanning news, current affairs and entertainment

-              talkSPORT 2 - a major new platform for live sport coverage in the UK which provides complementary output to talkSPORT on a 24/7 full-time basis

-              talkBUSINESS - an exciting addition to the UK’s radio line-up: the country’s first national radio station dedicated to business and finance

These new stations provide much-needed competition for the BBC in the area of speech radio and will spur additional consumer demand for digital radio.

UTV’s commercial team will be taking the new stations to market, expanding the choice of radio brands to both consumers and advertisers.

18 Hatfields is already the home of talkSPORT, the world’s biggest sports radio station, Sport, the UK’s biggest sport magazine and talkSPORT International, UTV’s fast-growing division which was launched in 2012 to exploit talkSPORT’s global audio rights for Premier League football.

UTV is in discussions with a range of suppliers as it prepares to fit out new studios and offices at 18 Hatfields ready for the new stations to launch in early 2016.

Commenting, UTV Media’s COO Scott Taunton said: “In 2016 UTV will be at the forefront of the biggest expansion in the UK’s national radio line-up in a generation.  We want to foster a culture of creative excellence and innovation at our national radio business, and the world-class new broadcast centre we’re planning to build on London’s South Bank will be the first step to achieving that goal.”