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Belfast City Council votes in favour of BBC studio use deal

Mark SimpsonCommunity correspondent, BBC News NI
News imageBelfast Stories A computer-generated image of Belfast Stories. It shows an aerial view of the Belfast skyline, with a focus on a large, brown building with a garden on its roof.Belfast Stories
Belfast Stories is expected to open in 2030

Belfast city councillors have voted in favour of a deal with the BBC over a new studio.

The vote overturns a committee decision to reject a proposed agreement with the broadcaster.

The new studio and event space will be based inside the £100m Belfast Stories development which is due to be built in the city centre by 2030.

Sinn Féin led opposition to the deal, saying the council "should not have a financial relationship with a state broadcaster".

It is not clear yet whether Sinn Féin will try to reverse the decision made on Wednesday night by the full 60-member council.

The vote was taken in private. It is believed it was backed by 30 votes to 24, with the support of unionists, the Alliance Party and the SDLP (Social Democratic and Labour Party).

News imageBelfast Stories Image of the former bank of Ireland in Belfast. It is a tall white art deco building with green detailing standing at a street corner in front of a junction. Traffic, including buses and cars, moves along the road beside rows of red‑brick and modern buildings under a bright, partly cloudy sky. Computer rendering shows how the extended Belfast Stories building will appear.Belfast Stories
Belfast Stories will be based at the site of the former Bank of Ireland building

Full details of the proposed deal have not been made public. The BBC has been in discussions with the council about using a large-scale studio space within the Belfast Stories project once it is built.

It is understood the plan would allow the broadcaster use of the space for 140 days a year for at least 10 years.

It would not have exclusive access to the space and it would not be branded as a BBC studio, as other organisations could use it, for exhibitions, film-screenings or other cultural events.

The Belfast Stories centre will be based at the site of the former Bank of Ireland building at the junction of Royal Avenue and North Street.

It will use words, pictures and sounds to illustrate the city's past, present and future.

The aim is to make it a tourist attraction.

News imageA landscape still of an empty, concrete room. On the right is a large, multi-panel window and there are a number of colourful graffiti tags on the walls and pillars around the room.
The project aims to restore the listed Art Deco former Bank of Ireland building on Royal Avenue

A BBC spokesperson said: "We welcome the Council's decision and the creative opportunities that it will help to unlock for the local screen sector and economy and BBC audiences everywhere."

Opposition to the deal

Sinn Féin is the largest party on the council, with 22 seats, and has been against the BBC's commercial involvement in Belfast Stories.

Speaking before the vote, a Sinn Féin spokesperson said: "Belfast City Council, as a democratic local authority, should maintain its independence from broadcasters.

"Belfast Stories should be shaped by the people of Belfast, through their elected council, free from any influence that could undermine the project's independence or public confidence."

News imageBelfast Stories Computer render of Belfast Stories interior. A large, bright airy foyer with mezzanines looking down on glass wall features. There is a visible roof garden.Belfast Stories
The building is set to become a city centre visitor attraction

Representatives from the SDLP and the Green Party also voted against the agreement with the BBC at the recent committee meeting.

However, at the full council meeting, it is believed the SDLP backed the proposal.

Plans for the Belfast Stories project were first revealed in 2021.

If all goes according to plan, building work on the development will begin before the end of next year.