Judi Dench joins calls by The Archers cast to keep show in Birmingham

The cast and crew behind The Archers, including the one-time guest star Judi Dench, have written to the BBC director general urging him to keep the recording of the Radio 4 drama in Birmingham.It emerged this week that the corporation was planning to stop recording the rural community soap opera in the city for the first time in the show’s 75-year history, after it scrapped plans for a radio drama studio.Staff were informed last week that the BBC, as part of its £500m cost-cutting drive, had ditched plans to build a bespoke studio at the Tea Factory in Digbeth, the corporation’s new Birmingham headquarters.Production staff will still move to the Tea Factory, but the broadcaster is looking for an existing studio where the show could be recorded. The West Midlands is included in the search, but there is no guarantee The Archers will be recorded in the region.Actors rehearse an episode of The Archers in the BBC studios in Birmingham. Photograph: The Washington Post/Getty ImagesA letter to Matt Brittin, the BBC’s director general, signed by more than 100 current and previous cast members, says: “The Archers leaving the Midlands is akin to Corrie leaving the north-west, or EastEnders the south-east. It is born of the very fabric of the place, and deserves to stay at home.”It adds: “Removing the recording of The Archers from the Midlands and divorcing the production team from the cast will have a tangible impact on the quality of the programme and represents an existential threat to its future.”The letter, which is also signed by current and former editors, scriptwriters, sound effects workers, programme advisers and the trade unions Equity and WGGB, highlights the history and heritage of the show, which is set in the fictional village of Ambridge in the West Midlands.The Archers’ recording studio. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian“A flagship show deserves flagship facilities, from which both the BBC and the city of Birmingham would benefit for decades,” the letter says.It ends by saying: “[We] stand in solidarity with our colleagues and the region, and to safeguard this beloved programme for generations of listeners and artists to come.”Dench played the character Pru Forrest in a cameo for the 10,000th episode of The Archers in May 1989, meeting guest star Terry Wogan, who played himself, during the show.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionThe studio’s semi-anechoic room, known as the dead room, because of the extensive soundproofing. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The GuardianIn an email to staff last week, a BBC executive said: “After careful consideration and as part of the BBC’s wider drive to reduce costs, the decision has been made … to not build a new radio drama studio for The Archers in the Tea Factory in Digbeth.“Consequently, options are being explored to identify suitable studio facilities where The Archers will be recorded. That currently includes looking into potential opportunities in the West Midlands, as well as across other parts of the UK.“To be clear, no decision has yet been reached. The priority is to find the most cost-effective solution which will maintain The Archers’ high production standards in addition to delivering significant savings.“The Archers is a jewel in the BBC’s crown. It’s been going for an incomparable 75 years – as has its connection with the West Midlands. It remains a hugely vital part of our future.”A BBC spokesperson said: “We recognise and value The Archers’ longstanding relationship with the West Midlands, which remains an important part of the programme’s future and The Archers production team will remain in their current home in the Mailbox and move, as planned, to the Tea Factory in Digbeth in early 2028.“However, after careful consideration, as part of the BBC’s wider drive to reduce costs, we are no longer building a new recording studio for The Archers in the Tea Factory. We’re currently assessing the BBC’s existing studio facilities around the UK as well as other external studio options in the West Midlands to find a more cost-effective solution, which will deliver significant savings while also maintaining The Archers’ high production standards.”