On Friday, I wrote a post about the plans for Abbey Road studios, the former home of the Beatles and one of the most iconic buildings in the British music industry past or present. According to reports last week, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber had confirmed that he wanted to not only save it but buy it in order to keep it in use. This week, the story is completely different and has definitely thrown my information out of touch!
Now, nobody will be buying Abbey Road because… it’s no longer for sale! Yes, after all the uproar and outrage that such an established and important part of British music history would be sold or worse, it is no longer for sale.
EMI have now taken Abbey Road off the market and are instead looking for investment to revitalise the studios. They have also welcomed news from the National Trust that they are expediting plans to list the building. This may come as a bit of a shock but it is absolutely true. They said so themselves in the following statement:
“In response to recent press speculation, EMI confirms that it is holding preliminary discussions for the revitalisation of Abbey Road with interested and appropriate third parties. Abbey Road studios had, for a number of years, been losing money and we have developed plans to revitalise the studios. These plans would involve a substantial injection of new capital.”
It really is a shame that it took a National Trust campaign and a Facebook campaign to alert EMI to the fact that Abbey Road can still be a viable proposition in the music industry, whether for recording purposes or simply as an attraction. Profitability overrules sentimentality though so if it cannot generate cash then we will probably hear the same rumours again in the near future.
Let’s hope not!
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