The Northern Film & TV Studios is the North East’s only large-scale commercial film and television studio complex, based in Hartlepool. Built on the site of the town’s former bus maintenance sheds, the 30,000 sq. ft. facility offers dry hire studio and green screen space designed for professional film and TV production companies, from feature films to high-end television.
The studios opened in 2022 following a £3.76m development, and have since hosted a run of high-profile productions, including ITV’s I Fought the Law, ITV comedy Transaction and the feature film Jackdaw. A further £33.5m expansion is now under way, backed by Hartlepool Borough Council, Tees Valley Combined Authority and North East Screen, which will add larger studio space and create a Screen Industries Production Village around the site, bringing nine disused buildings, including the Grade II-listed Shades Hotel, back into use as pre- and post-production spaces, workshops and creative hubs.
The Northern Studios is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Northern School of Art, which led the project’s development as part of its wider support for the creative industries and the regeneration of Hartlepool. The site sits directly alongside the School’s Hartlepool campus, giving students on its stage and screen degrees access to industry-standard facilities and real-world productions on their doorstep, and giving the town itself a growing reputation as a home for national and international screen production.