mediacity:uk - what is it ?

mediacity:uk is the proposed 200 acre site on Salford Quays for a new state of the art `city’ housing creative and media industries which is stuff like new technology companies, computer games developers, film makers, production companies etc. The first 36 acres now has planning permission and they’re praying for the BBC to kick off the whole thing by moving some of its operations, like Radio 5, Sport and Children’s, down here from London in 2010, together with shifting its current base from Oxford Road in Manchester. It’s reckoned that 750 BBC staff will move up from London and 750 BBC staff will move from Oxford Road.

No-one’s made their minds up yet because the BBC wants an increase in the tv license fee to pay for the move and the government seems to be telling them to get stuffed. From the current info that the Salford Star has got, we reckon that the move will go ahead but not on the £400 million grand scale that was originally proposed. Our man in the know (‘cos he walks his dog on the field that’s going to be the BBC site) says it’s probably going ahead because he’s already seen them laying huge cables.