Be First – Barking and Dagenham Council’s pioneering urban regeneration company – today issued an invitation to ambitious investors, entrepreneurs and businesses to help build London’s largest film studios and media complex in Dagenham.

Announcing the hunt for partners, Barking and Dagenham Council’s Leader, Cllr Darren Rodwell, said: “We are looking for like-minded partners to help us bring world class film studios to Dagenham.

“It will be an east end epic which will create hundreds of quality jobs and inject millions into the local economy.”

And Cllr Rodwell said he wants the studios to inspire local talent to become tomorrow’s stars of the screen.

He said: “I hope that bringing London’s largest studios to Dagenham will inspire local people to get involved in the film industry.

“It would be brilliant if a Made In Dagenham film studios leads to stars Made in Dagenham.”

And backing the move too is iconic photographer and east ender, David Bailey.

He said: “This is a great opportunity to bring arts and crafts to Barking and Dagenham.”

It would be brilliant if a Made In Dagenham film studios leads to stars Made in Dagenham

The announcement follows the release of a feasibility study on the possibility of studios at Dagenham East, commissioned by Barking and Dagenham Council and the Greater London Assembly.

It concludes that ‘Dagenham East represents a rare chance to build a world-class film studio within the boundaries of Greater London’ while supporting the ‘long-term success of the UK’s booming film and TV production industries’.

It suggests the studios would also directly create around 780 jobs and generate £35 million a year to the UK economy.

The job of finding partners to deliver a Made in Dagenham film studios and media complex on the 20-acre site on former industrial land rests with Be First.

Barking and Dagenham is already a major location hotspot for film and TV makers, with a host of blockbusters and TV dramas being filmed in the borough, including Marvel’s Doctor Strange, Sky’s Lucky Man and Channel 4’s Humans through Film LBBD.

Pat Hayes, Managing Director of Be First, said: “This is an outstanding opportunity for an ambitious organisation to make help make Dagenham famous for films as well as Ford’s.

“We have had interest already but we really want to see the full potential of this site!”

Be First’s search for a builder and operator of the new studios is the company’s first major project since its launch in October 2017.

Expressions of interest can be made before 20 December. More details can be found on the Be First website.