Fit-out specialist Overbury has been awarded a £13 million contract to complete the interior works for the BBC’s new creative base at the landmark Tea Factory redevelopment in Digbeth, Birmingham.
The deal follows a competitive tender process that saw Overbury beat off rival bidder Heydon & Carr to deliver the high-profile project, which forms the final stage of the broadcaster’s relocation from its long-standing home at The Mailbox. Around 650 BBC staff are set to make the move once works are complete.
Developer Stoford and main contractor BAM began transforming the derelict Tea Factory into a modern shell-and-core office building in early 2024. Practical completion of the base build is scheduled for December 2025, after which Overbury will take over for a nine-month fit-out running through to the end of September 2026.
The four-storey fit-out will provide a suite of cutting-edge production and broadcasting facilities, including a TV studio and gallery, eight radio studios, ten edit suites, a radio drama studio, lecture theatre, and a range of apparatus, meeting and collaboration spaces. The works will also encompass full mechanical and electrical installations, raised access flooring, acoustic finishes, and the supply and installation of furniture, fixtures and equipment.
Designs for the new base have been led by BBC Workplace, with project management by J4 Projects and cost consultancy from MGAC. Architectural and interior design input has been provided by AWW Architects and IDSR, while CMB is responsible for MEP design, Arup for structural engineering, and Ion Acoustics for the scheme’s specialist sound performance requirements.
Once complete, the Tea Factory will become a key hub for the BBC’s operations in the Midlands, providing state-of-the-art facilities within Digbeth’s growing media quarter. The move reflects the broadcaster’s ongoing strategy to decentralise its operations and further embed itself within creative communities across the UK.
Overbury’s appointment marks another major milestone for the redevelopment, signalling the start of the final phase in creating a world-class broadcasting environment in the heart of Birmingham’s creative district.
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