Misplaced Pages

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30-462: The name 'Grove Green' can be traced back to at least the early 20th century, as seen in ordnance survey maps of the time. This is due to the way the area was previously divided up. The area now covered in housing once formed part of a vast country estate, the remains of the manor house can be found at the nearby Vinters Valley Nature reserve. Grove Green was built upon the market farm, in the Eastern part of

60-512: A number of co-anchors including Merrill Harries, Mike Fuller, Cheryl Armitage, Anna Maria Ashe and Liz Wickham. Other key reporters and presenters on the Coast to Coast team in the South East included Cathy Alexander, Jackie Bird , Paul Davies, Anne Dawson and Kerry Swain. The Maidstone news team covered a number of major news stories during the programme's 11 years on air including the sinking of

90-436: A number of former Southern TV presenters and reporters including sports presenter Mike Field (who presented the programme's predecessor, Scene South East ), Mike Fuller, Arnie Wilson and weatherman Ron Lobeck. Mackeson left Coast to Coast after several months and was replaced by former BBC News reporter Mike Debens as main anchor. Debens went on to become the programme's longest serving main presenter, partnered on-screen by

120-404: A pan-regional segment at 6:00 pm. Within several months of launch, the main evening edition was cut to 30 minutes at 6 pm and became a fully separate programme. Former ITN reporter and newsreader Robert Southgate was the first head of news and current affairs for TVS. The programme also spawned a spin-off lunchtime chat show entitled Coast to Coast People , broadcast as two separate programmes for

150-474: A primary school, supermarket, community centre, doctors surgery and other small shops, as well as two pubs. The Minor Centre shopping area is within Grove Green. In 2006, Abbey New Homes plc submitted a planning application for five new dwellings to be built upon the land between Grovewood Drive (North) and Grovewood Drive (South). The council rejected this, resulting in a metal 'prison fence' being erected around

180-803: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . The Maidstone Studios The Maidstone Studios , formerly called TVS Television Centre , is the largest independent television studio complex in the United Kingdom, and is based at Vinters Park in Maidstone , Kent, England. It has been home to a varied selection of independent British television programming including Later... with Jools Holland , Jools' Annual Hootenanny , Take Me Out , Catchphrase , as well as popular children's shows such as Mister Maker and Let's Play for CBeebies , or Art Attack for TVS and later for ITV and Disney Channel . Other recent credits also include: Bang on

210-417: Is via the studio's scene dock area. The studios do not currently have any camera equipment other than a limited number of tripods and pedestals, and hence visiting productions are required to hire-in equipment from elsewhere. Maidstone also has four edit suites, one dubbing suite, dressing rooms and green rooms, production and wardrobe departments, scenery departments, transmission and playback facilities. On

240-952: The Herald of Free Enterprise , the construction of the Channel Tunnel , the IRA bombings of the Brighton Grand Hotel and the Royal Marines base in Deal, and the Great Storm of 1987 . The programme won the Royal Television Society Award for Britain's best regional news programme in 1983. On 16 October 1991, Television South learned it was to lose its ITV regional franchise for the South and South East of England to Meridian Broadcasting , signalling

270-665: The IBA raised specific criticisms about the content of the programme, which led to a new editor being appointed to help resolve the issues. Coast to Coast South went on to win the Royal Television Society's Best News Programme of the Year award twice – in 1989 and 1991. The South East edition of Coast to Coast was produced and broadcast originally from a small studio in Dover previously used by Southern Television and, by October 1982, from

300-514: The Maidstone Studios premises is a data centre that offers rack space for servers for local, national and international companies. Other studios on the site: Coast to Coast (UK TV series) Coast to Coast was the flagship regional news programme produced by TVS , covering the south and southeast of England with separate news services for both parts of the dual-region between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1992. Coast to Coast

330-578: The Money , The Royals on E!, Ultimate Brain and Hetty Feather for CBBC , Davina McCall - Fitness DVDs, and The Coalition drama for Channel 4. The site was originally chosen by the now defunct ITV company Southern Television in 1979 for a proposed new studio facility should they win the contract from the Independent Broadcasting Authority (the UK television regulator at the time), for

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360-802: The South and South East. For one week in November 1989, TVS also piloted a 30-minute late night edition of the programme entitled Coast to Coast Late . The launch of the expanded news service for the two-halves of the region led to TVS increasing its news staff from 37 to 94 with the company investing in computer facilities for its newsrooms. TVS was also the first television station in Britain to have its own dedicated live-link news helicopter – an Aerospatiale Twin Squirrel equipped with remote control camera and facilities to receive live pictures beamed up to it from five Land Rover Discovery mobile up-link units. This system

390-651: The Thames Valley) and Poole (covering Dorset). From 12 December 1988 to 31 December 1992, an opt-out for viewers served by the Hannington transmitter was broadcast during the main 6pm programme – produced from TVS's Reading newsroom and broadcast from a small continuity studio in Southampton. The programme was originally presented by Khalid Aziz and utilised many former Southern Television staff including sports presenter Fred Dinenage and weatherman Trevor Baker . Dinenage

420-490: The UK Family Channel business. During 2002 the new owner of Flextech, Telewest Communications, overhauled the structure of the operations which resulted in the disposal of the studios. The studios were bought in 2002 by a local consortium of businessmen under the name Dovedale Associates for £4.25 million, headed by ex-BBC producer Geoff Miles. In 2005 a £2 million refurbishment programme took place, as part of

450-493: The building as a production centre for the south east edition of Meridian Tonight , before moving to its own centre at nearby New Hythe between 1994 and 2004. The Meridian newsgathering operation returned to Maidstone Studios in 2004, though the studio for the programme moved to Meridian's new base at Whiteley in Hampshire. TVS, including the Maidstone Studios, was quickly bought by International Family Entertainment Inc. and

480-415: The colour logo device had been re-registered to lighting cameraman Keith Jacobsen, who traded as an independent production company with no links to the original. The 'new' TVS ceased trading on 9 March 2012, but as of May 2017 is owned by another independent production company. The area including car-parks and outbuildings to the east of the studio premises were bought by Hillreed Homes – planning permission

510-480: The end for Coast to Coast . The final editions of the programme were aired as an hour-long special on 31 December 1992. In the South, Fred Dinenage and Mai Davies presented a regular edition featuring the last part of a feature series looking back at the past 11 years of news coverage provided by TVS. Meanwhile, in the South East, Mike Debens and Liz Wickham presented a more retrospective programme featuring an invited studio audience. The last South edition closed with

540-511: The estate. Similarly, nearby Vinters Park housing estate was built upon the former hop and wheat fields to the west. A remaining 90 acres (360,000 m) of former estate land is maintained by the Vinters Valley Nature Reserve. The Maidstone Studios are also nearby which has resulted in the area being used for many television programs including Cats Eyes , Tittybangbang , What's Up Doc and others. The development includes

570-442: The land owned by the developer. The reasoning for the rejection of the application was said by the council to be wanting an option to be able to open up the road, and join the two ends of Grovewood drive, to ease the growing traffic problems of the development. In 2007, the application was re-submitted, with minor modifications. The council reluctantly gave permission for the development to go ahead. Construction started in mid-2007, and

600-431: The new dual South and South-east of England region in 1981. As Southern Television lost their franchise, they sold the site to the successful applicant Television South (TVS) at a premium. It was part of the agreement between TVS and the IBA , that TVS needed to provide a separate studio facility for the South East region. The complex first opened in late 1982 providing broadcasting and production output for TVS. The site

630-479: The new owner's plans for the complex. A new Studio 5 (now known as Studio 1) was opened, which covers 12,000 square feet (1,100 m ) able to accommodate a 2,000-strong audience; it is now their flagship HD studio, and between April 2013 and December 2018 was the home of BBC2 's Later... with Jools Holland . From 2006 to 2012 a company called "TVS Television Productions Ltd" was based in offices at The Maidstone Studios. The name "Television South Ltd", "TVS" and

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660-504: The purpose-built TVS Television Centre in Maidstone – a district newsroom was located in Brighton to cover East Sussex. An ultra-local opt-out for viewers in Brighton and the surrounding areas was later developed, produced from the Brighton newsroom, but broadcast from a small continuity studio in Maidstone. Originally presented by Vyvyan Mackeson, the programme's launch team also included

690-525: The studios were used as an independent production facility. IFE subsequently launched a UK version of The Family Channel based in The Maidstone Studios, using some elements of the TVS programme archive. Flextech was a partner in the venture, taking a 39% stake in the business. In 1996, the studio complex was sold by International Family Entertainment Inc. to Flextech when it acquired the remaining 61% of

720-447: Was also used as a regional office and a newsgathering hub, broadcasting the South East daily edition of Coast to Coast . TVS continued to use Maidstone until the end of their franchise, which they lost in 1991. When TVS lost its franchise from ITV, the Maidstone facility was retained, with a view to TVS becoming an independent production company. The new south and south east ITV contractor, Meridian, initially continued to rent space in

750-549: Was broadcast on New Year's Day 1982 at 9:25 am with a pan-regional special entitled Bring in the New (TVS's first programme), introducing the new station and featuring TVS's first news bulletins. The first sub-regional editions of the programme were aired at 5:15 pm on the same evening – reportedly watched by nearly a million viewers. Originally, the programme aired between 5:30 pm & 6:30 pm, consisting of two sub-regional segments at 5:30 pm & 6:20 pm, ITN's News at 545 bulletin and

780-672: Was brought into use in 1990 and relayed live news coverage from anywhere in the South and South East to reception dishes located on the region's main transmitter masts. Both the South and the South East editions of Coast to Coast also utilised a newsroom at the QE2 Conference Centre in London – particularly for parliamentary coverage. The South edition of Coast to Coast was produced and broadcast from TVS's main studios in Southampton with district newsrooms latterly opened in Reading (covering

810-547: Was completed in April 2008. The community hall is for a number of local social events including shin-gi-tai karate club who took over the original Grove Green Karate Club in 2003. This club has been operating in Grove green for well over 20 years and still enjoys the support of many local students. 51°16′38″N 0°33′7″E  /  51.27722°N 0.55194°E  / 51.27722; 0.55194 This Kent location article

840-784: Was granted in 2014 for 77 dwellings, and work to redevelop the site started in 2017. It is planned for vehicular access to the studios (including for production trucks) to be retained through the new housing estate. As of October 2017, Maidstone Studios is only advertising its two largest studios, and is no longer advertising the three other studios on site. Studios 1 and 2 have room for audience seating as well as room for sets. Studio 1 can handle 2,400 standing, 1,200 seated; Studio 2 can handle 250 seated. Both have large production galleries, are fully air-conditioned and can operate in SD or HD . Studio 1 also includes two large scene dock doors to allow easy access for people, scenery and vehicles. Access to Stage 2

870-496: Was launched in January 1982 as TVS's nightly regional news magazine with two distinct editions for both the South and the South East. Previously, TVS's predecessors Southern Television had produced Day by Day for over 20 years alongside separate news bulletins for both sub-regions and Scene South East , a weekly magazine programme for the South East (supplemented in later years by Scene Midweek ). The first edition of Coast to Coast

900-715: Was promoted to become main anchor when Aziz left Coast to Coast a year later to concentrate on business programming for TVS. After a period presenting alongside Christopher Peacock, Dinenage was joined by Fern Britton in 1985 – a partnership which continued for much of the programme's run until Britton's departure shortly before TVS went off air in December 1992. Other presenters for the South edition included newsreaders James Montgomery, John Doyle, Debbie Thrower , Jane Wyatt, Keith Akehurst, Mai Davies and Debbie Middleton, sports presenters David Bobin and Gareth Evans and weather presenters Anne Purvis and Carl Tyler. In November 1986

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