Granada Studios Tour
Encyclopedia
Granada Studios Tour was an entertainment theme park
at the Granada Studios complex in Castlefield
, Manchester
which England
operated from 1988 to 1999. The park was located in the heart of Manchester city centre
adjacent to the Granada House building.
The tour attracted over 5 million visitors, but visitor numbers were waning by the late 1990s and Granada Television had to prioritise other economic problems such as the failure of ONdigital. As a result the Granada Studios Tour closed to the general public in 1999 and for good in 2001.
, who had long been interested in developing the land around the Granada Studios
complex in Manchester. There was scope to the plans as the studio facilities were only used for filming once a week, allowing visitors and production to work harmoniously. Furthermore much of the land that Granada owned was derelict and underused, with Plowright believing that such land should be cultivated.
Plowright's aim was to create a 'Hollywood-on-the-Irwell', a reference to the River Irwell which runs through Manchester. The Granada Group hierarchy which was the parent of Granada Manchester were pessimistic about Plowright's plans. Fortunately for Plowright, he gained the support of the Granada Television hierarchy, such as John Williams
and commercial director Chris Mather.
A key part of the tour would be for visitors to walk down Coronation Street
, but the Tour would also centre around the Bonded Warehouse adjacent to the main Granada House building. Plowright ordered the renovation of the Victorian Warehouse for the Studio Tour at a cost of £3m.
gradually fell into neglect and disrepair, and visitor numbers fell. Granada was going through a period of unprecedented change, and many of the company's divisions were sold off in the wake of the OnDigital
fiasco. The tour complex was seen as a loss-making enterprise and plans were made to close it, unbeknownst to the public at large, who always saw the Coronation Street visit as the most important part of the whole complex.
The formation of 3sixtymedia, a joint venture facilities company based primarily at Granada's Quay Street studios and co-owned by BBC Resources and Granada, spelled the final end for the Tours, as the company moved into the Bonded Warehouse on the site, and started using some of the other buildings (such as the Starlight Theatre) for additional studio and warehousing space.
For a short while before its final, abrupt closure, the complex was open only to pre-booked parties, such as corporate events, fan club
visits, and Manchester Mardi Gras' "Treat on the Street", a themed night time event during the August Bank Holiday weekend.
In 2000, one year following its closure, parts of the tour were demolished allowing Granada the opportunity to expand the set of Coronation Street, to include a new viaduct (to allow filming on Rosamund Street without exposing the Quay Street Studios which run adjacent to the rear of the set), Roy's Rolls café, the renovation of the derelict Graffiti Club into a new medical centre, a new building yard, two shops joining the cafe (the new kebab shop called Prima Donna -originally Sally Webster's hardware store- and Elliott and Son's Master Butchers) and a few new houses. Since the closure of the tour, the exterior set has been seen more often in the soap.
The former Baker Street building was turned into a new studio for Coronation Street, named Stage Two, containing more studio sets. The Bonded Warehouse, which sits at the end of Coronation Street, and formerly housed most of the tour, now contains new offices, the Granada Reports
studio and a state-of-the-art newsroom.
In 2008, a rumour was circulated that ITV were considering reopening the tour as well as licensing real 'Rovers Return' pubs.
These reports came to nothing, as it would have involved a considerable amount of site reorganisation, at a time when Granada were discussing a move to a smaller location in Trafford Park.
In March 2009, it was announced Coronation Street would stay on the current Quay Street site "for the forseeable future". Also, Granada's studios had become the home of shows displaced by the closure of the former Yorkshire Television studios in Leeds, including Channel 4's Countdown. However, following a change of hands at ITV management, talks between ITV and The Peel Group for the move to Trafford Park site reopened in January 2010 leading to a deal which was finally announced in December 2010. This means that Granada Television will vacate the Quay Street complex by 2013, and the area sold off.
There still remains some doubt over the future of the actual Coronation Street outdoor set itself once production transfers to the new Trafford Park complex. Manchester City Council owns part of the land upon which the studios are built, and talks are underway to discuss the possibility of the outdoor set being taken over by the adjacent Museum of Science and Industry
to create a Coronation Street attraction.
street setting replicating Times Square
, complete with yellow cabs
, large neon advertisements and entertainers role-playing police officers. This area was the site of the first exterior set of Coronation Street
, used from 1968 until 1982 (chosen for the Victorian viaduct which lay behind the New York facade).
The guided tour itself, which lasted around an hour, comprised various mock sets from Granada productions, including a recreation of Downing Street
, the Sherlock Holmes
-era Baker Street
backlot set from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
series, and the giant room from Return of the Antelope, where furniture was designed on a much larger scale to create the illusion of small humans. The lounge of 'Home Farm' from Emmerdale, and the cafe from Coronation Street were also mocked up for the tour.
In the early days of the Tours, a bus would take you through a mockup of Checkpoint Charlie
, and then down Baker Street towards Coronation Street, where you would disembark. This feature was later discarded, and the Baker Street set had a warehouse-style building erected around the outdoor set, creating an indoor street.
The focal point of the tour was the opportunity to walk down the actual cobbled street used in Coronation Street since 1982. The tour was closed on Mondays, as this was the day that the set was used for filming at the time.
Live action
shows were performed at intervals throughout each day, including a parody of a political debate in the House of Commons
chamber set used for First Among Equals
. This set was often used by other television productions wanting to set scenes in the Commons chamber, such as The New Statesman
, and in 2002 was purchased by the scriptwriter Paul Abbott
so that it could be used in his BBC
drama serial State of Play. Abbott, himself a former Granada Television staff writer, bought it personally as the set would otherwise have been destroyed and he feared it would take too long to get the necessary money from the BBC. He currently keeps it in storage in Oxford
.
Visitors could also enjoy a drink in a replica of the Rovers Return, the pub in Coronation Street. In the adjacent cafeteria, a mockup of the bar from Emmerdale
s Woolpack was also included.
Other attractions included the opportunity to appear in a special Coronation Street scene in the Rovers Return with the main characters, using the chroma key
process. Also, a ride named MotionMaster was developed whereby people could watch a short adventure film while being strapped into chairs which moved in synchronisation with the action on the large screen. One such film was based upon the film "Aliens", when the squad entered the base in a transporter. Latterly, other rides such as a single-person monorail called a "Solocoaster", and other fairground-style rides were installed, including a 3-D film
show. Granada Studios Tour had also featured the shop featured in Sooty & Co.
. One of the country's most famous Wurlitzer organs made regular concert appearances in an "old-style" venue, but following the closure, was sold to Folly Farm in Tenby.
Bill Bryson
visited the Tours and talked about it in his book Notes from a Small Island
.He praises highly the House of Commons show.
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
at the Granada Studios complex in Castlefield
Castlefield
Castlefield is an inner city area of Manchester, in North West England. The conservation area which bears its name is bounded by the River Irwell, Quay Street, Deansgate and the Chester Road. It was the site of the Roman era fort of Mamucium or Mancunium which gave its name to Manchester...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
which England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
operated from 1988 to 1999. The park was located in the heart of Manchester city centre
Manchester City Centre
Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England. It lies within the Manchester Inner Ring Road, next to the River Irwell...
adjacent to the Granada House building.
The tour attracted over 5 million visitors, but visitor numbers were waning by the late 1990s and Granada Television had to prioritise other economic problems such as the failure of ONdigital. As a result the Granada Studios Tour closed to the general public in 1999 and for good in 2001.
Proposal
The park was the brainchild of Granada producer David PlowrightDavid Plowright
David Ernest Plowright, CBE was an English television executive and producer....
, who had long been interested in developing the land around the Granada Studios
The Manchester Studios
The Manchester Studios is a television studio on Quay Street in Manchester with the facility to broadcast live and film drama programmes. The studios have been home to Granada Television since its inception in 1954...
complex in Manchester. There was scope to the plans as the studio facilities were only used for filming once a week, allowing visitors and production to work harmoniously. Furthermore much of the land that Granada owned was derelict and underused, with Plowright believing that such land should be cultivated.
Plowright's aim was to create a 'Hollywood-on-the-Irwell', a reference to the River Irwell which runs through Manchester. The Granada Group hierarchy which was the parent of Granada Manchester were pessimistic about Plowright's plans. Fortunately for Plowright, he gained the support of the Granada Television hierarchy, such as John Williams
John Williams (businessman)
John Williams is a businessman who has most notably involved as a football executive in English football. Born in Hampshire, Williams he moved north to work at Granada Manchester in the late 1970s....
and commercial director Chris Mather.
A key part of the tour would be for visitors to walk down Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
, but the Tour would also centre around the Bonded Warehouse adjacent to the main Granada House building. Plowright ordered the renovation of the Victorian Warehouse for the Studio Tour at a cost of £3m.
Opening
Granada Studios Tours opened in July 1988 and quickly surpassed all expectations. A feasibility study prior to its opening estimated first year visitor figures of 250,000 to 275,000, but within 8 months the Tour had 600,000 visitors.Closure
As the 1990s drew to a close, the theme parkAmusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
gradually fell into neglect and disrepair, and visitor numbers fell. Granada was going through a period of unprecedented change, and many of the company's divisions were sold off in the wake of the OnDigital
ITV Digital
ITV Digital was a British digital terrestrial television broadcaster, which launched a pay-TV service on the world's first digital terrestrial television network as ONdigital in 1998 and briefly re-branded as ITV Digital in July 2001, before the service ceased in May 2002. Its main shareholders...
fiasco. The tour complex was seen as a loss-making enterprise and plans were made to close it, unbeknownst to the public at large, who always saw the Coronation Street visit as the most important part of the whole complex.
The formation of 3sixtymedia, a joint venture facilities company based primarily at Granada's Quay Street studios and co-owned by BBC Resources and Granada, spelled the final end for the Tours, as the company moved into the Bonded Warehouse on the site, and started using some of the other buildings (such as the Starlight Theatre) for additional studio and warehousing space.
For a short while before its final, abrupt closure, the complex was open only to pre-booked parties, such as corporate events, fan club
Fan club
A fan club is a group that is dedicated to a well-known person, group, idea or sometimes even an inanimate object . Most fan clubs are run by fans who devote considerable time and resources to supporting them. There are also "official" fan clubs that are run by someone associated with the person...
visits, and Manchester Mardi Gras' "Treat on the Street", a themed night time event during the August Bank Holiday weekend.
In 2000, one year following its closure, parts of the tour were demolished allowing Granada the opportunity to expand the set of Coronation Street, to include a new viaduct (to allow filming on Rosamund Street without exposing the Quay Street Studios which run adjacent to the rear of the set), Roy's Rolls café, the renovation of the derelict Graffiti Club into a new medical centre, a new building yard, two shops joining the cafe (the new kebab shop called Prima Donna -originally Sally Webster's hardware store- and Elliott and Son's Master Butchers) and a few new houses. Since the closure of the tour, the exterior set has been seen more often in the soap.
The former Baker Street building was turned into a new studio for Coronation Street, named Stage Two, containing more studio sets. The Bonded Warehouse, which sits at the end of Coronation Street, and formerly housed most of the tour, now contains new offices, the Granada Reports
Granada Reports
Granada Reports is the flagship regional news programme of ITV franchisee Granada, presented by Tony Morris and Lucy Meacock, and serving the North West of England and the Isle of Man....
studio and a state-of-the-art newsroom.
In 2008, a rumour was circulated that ITV were considering reopening the tour as well as licensing real 'Rovers Return' pubs.
These reports came to nothing, as it would have involved a considerable amount of site reorganisation, at a time when Granada were discussing a move to a smaller location in Trafford Park.
In March 2009, it was announced Coronation Street would stay on the current Quay Street site "for the forseeable future". Also, Granada's studios had become the home of shows displaced by the closure of the former Yorkshire Television studios in Leeds, including Channel 4's Countdown. However, following a change of hands at ITV management, talks between ITV and The Peel Group for the move to Trafford Park site reopened in January 2010 leading to a deal which was finally announced in December 2010. This means that Granada Television will vacate the Quay Street complex by 2013, and the area sold off.
There still remains some doubt over the future of the actual Coronation Street outdoor set itself once production transfers to the new Trafford Park complex. Manchester City Council owns part of the land upon which the studios are built, and talks are underway to discuss the possibility of the outdoor set being taken over by the adjacent Museum of Science and Industry
Museum of Science and Industry
MOSI may refer to:* MoSi — molybdenum silicide, an important material in the semiconductor industry* MOSI - Master Out Slave In, a signal on the Serial Peripheral Interface Bus* MOSI protocol, an extension of the basic MSI cache coherency protocol...
to create a Coronation Street attraction.
Overview
The exterior of the complex was a New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
street setting replicating Times Square
Times Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
, complete with yellow cabs
Taxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...
, large neon advertisements and entertainers role-playing police officers. This area was the site of the first exterior set of Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
, used from 1968 until 1982 (chosen for the Victorian viaduct which lay behind the New York facade).
The guided tour itself, which lasted around an hour, comprised various mock sets from Granada productions, including a recreation of Downing Street
Downing Street
Downing Street in London, England has for over two hundred years housed the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now synonymous with that of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the Treasury, an...
, the Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
-era Baker Street
Baker Street
Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. It is named after builder William Baker, who laid the street out in the 18th century. The street is most famous for its connection to the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, who lived at a fictional 221B...
backlot set from The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (TV series)
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is the name given to the TV series of Sherlock Holmes adaptations produced by British television company Granada Television between 1984 and 1994, although only the first two series bore that title on screen. The series was broadcast on the ITV network in the UK,...
series, and the giant room from Return of the Antelope, where furniture was designed on a much larger scale to create the illusion of small humans. The lounge of 'Home Farm' from Emmerdale, and the cafe from Coronation Street were also mocked up for the tour.
In the early days of the Tours, a bus would take you through a mockup of Checkpoint Charlie
Checkpoint Charlie
Checkpoint Charlie was the name given by the Western Allies to the best-known Berlin Wall crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War....
, and then down Baker Street towards Coronation Street, where you would disembark. This feature was later discarded, and the Baker Street set had a warehouse-style building erected around the outdoor set, creating an indoor street.
The focal point of the tour was the opportunity to walk down the actual cobbled street used in Coronation Street since 1982. The tour was closed on Mondays, as this was the day that the set was used for filming at the time.
Live action
Live action
In filmmaking, video production, and other media, the term live action refers to cinematography, videography not produced using animation...
shows were performed at intervals throughout each day, including a parody of a political debate in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
chamber set used for First Among Equals
First Among Equals (TV series)
First Among Equals is a ten-part miniseries based on Jeffrey Archer's 1984 novel First Among Equals, produced by Granada Television and aired on ITV in 1986....
. This set was often used by other television productions wanting to set scenes in the Commons chamber, such as The New Statesman
The New Statesman
The New Statesman is an award-winning British sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative government of the time...
, and in 2002 was purchased by the scriptwriter Paul Abbott
Paul Abbott
Paul Abbott is a BAFTA award-winning English television screenwriter and producer. Abbott has become one of the most critically and commercially successful television writers working in Britain today, following his work on many popular series, including Coronation Street, Cracker and Shameless,...
so that it could be used in his BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
drama serial State of Play. Abbott, himself a former Granada Television staff writer, bought it personally as the set would otherwise have been destroyed and he feared it would take too long to get the necessary money from the BBC. He currently keeps it in storage in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
Visitors could also enjoy a drink in a replica of the Rovers Return, the pub in Coronation Street. In the adjacent cafeteria, a mockup of the bar from Emmerdale
Emmerdale
Emmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...
s Woolpack was also included.
Other attractions included the opportunity to appear in a special Coronation Street scene in the Rovers Return with the main characters, using the chroma key
Chroma key
Chroma key compositing is a technique for compositing two images together. A color range in the top layer is made transparent, revealing another image behind. The chroma keying technique is commonly used in video production and post-production...
process. Also, a ride named MotionMaster was developed whereby people could watch a short adventure film while being strapped into chairs which moved in synchronisation with the action on the large screen. One such film was based upon the film "Aliens", when the squad entered the base in a transporter. Latterly, other rides such as a single-person monorail called a "Solocoaster", and other fairground-style rides were installed, including a 3-D film
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
show. Granada Studios Tour had also featured the shop featured in Sooty & Co.
Sooty & Co.
Sooty & Co is a British children's television series that was aired on ITV from 1993 to 1998 for six series, replacing the 37 year old Sooty Show. The programme centres on Matthew Corbett, and puppets Sooty, Sweep, Soo and Scampi, as they try to run a shop in Manchester. In 1998 Matthew Corbett...
. One of the country's most famous Wurlitzer organs made regular concert appearances in an "old-style" venue, but following the closure, was sold to Folly Farm in Tenby.
Bill Bryson
Bill Bryson
William McGuire "Bill" Bryson, OBE, is a best-selling American author of humorous books on travel, as well as books on the English language and on science. Born an American, he was a resident of Britain for most of his adult life before moving back to the US in 1995...
visited the Tours and talked about it in his book Notes from a Small Island
Notes from a Small Island
Notes from a Small Island is a humorous travel book on Great Britain by American author Bill Bryson, first published in 1995.-Overview:Bryson wrote Notes from a Small Island when he decided to move back to his native United States, but wanted to take one final trip around Great Britain, which had...
.He praises highly the House of Commons show.