The wartime movie 1917 was one of the major blockbusters made at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Photo: Universal Pictures
The wartime movie 1917 was one of the major blockbusters made at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Photo: Universal Pictures
The wartime movie 1917 was one of the major blockbusters made at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Photo: Universal Pictures
The wartime movie 1917 was one of the major blockbusters made at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, England. Photo: Universal Pictures

Shepperton to be world's second biggest film studio with £500 million expansion


Neil Murphy
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Shepperton Studios in the UK is set for a £500 million expansion that will make it the second largest film and TV studio in the world.

The development, located in Surrey on the outskirts of London, will include a further 17 stages and deliver about 1.2 million square feet.

Politicians have hailed the news, saying that it will “cement” the UK's status as a global filmmaker.

Streaming giants Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have both committed to leasing Shepperton's studio space for their future creative projects.

Earlier this year Prime Video said it had signed a multimillion-pound long-term contract for the exclusive use of nine sound stages, workshops and office accommodation facilities at Shepperton Studios.

Netflix had already agreed to a deal for the exclusive use of studio space at the site earlier this year.

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said the deal “cements our status as one of the best places globally to make film and television.”

On Tuesday she visited Shepperton Studios, which is part of the Pinewood Group, and met senior leaders of Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video, as well as members of the local council.

Shepperton film studios is getting a major £500 million expansion.
Shepperton film studios is getting a major £500 million expansion.

They toured the new £500 million expansion project, which is due to open from June 2023.

Ms Donelan said Shepperton Studios was already a “world class production facility” which has created blockbuster classics such as 1917, Gladiator, Billy Elliot and Love Actually.

“The studio’s major expansion will enable our home-grown dream factory to become the second largest studio in the world and create bigger and better global hits, which will cement our status as one of the best places globally to make film and television.”

She added: “Alongside the government’s funding for the BFI Film Academy and National Film and Television School, we look forward to working with the industry to make sure British filmmakers have the skills they need to make the most of the new job opportunities our great entertainment industry has to offer.”

Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan, second right, with, from left to right, Chris Bird from Prime Video, Paul Golding from Pinewood Group and Anna Mallett from Netflix, as she toured Shepperton Studios.
Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan, second right, with, from left to right, Chris Bird from Prime Video, Paul Golding from Pinewood Group and Anna Mallett from Netflix, as she toured Shepperton Studios.

Paul Golding, chairman of Pinewood Group, said the expansion was already progressing at great pace.

He said that his company was adding more than one million square feet to support the UK film industry and to meet the needs of Netflix and Amazon.

Ms Donelan’s visit continued to Pinewood Studios where she opened the Buckinghamshire film office and met students studying creative media skills and toured the production spaces and facilities.

Films made at Shepperton Studios — in pictures

UAE squad

Ali Kashief, Salem Rashid, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Ali Mabkhout, Omar Abdelrahman, Mohammed Al Attas (Al Jazira), Mohmmed Al Shamsi, Hamdan Al Kamali, Mohammad Barghash, Khalil Al Hammadi (Al Wahda), Khalid Eisa, Mohammed Shakir, Ahmed Barman, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Adel Al Hosani, Al Hassan Saleh, Majid Suroor (Sharjah), Waleed Abbas, Ismail Al Hammadi, Ahmed Khalil (Shabab Al Ahli Dubai) Habib Fardan, Tariq Ahmed, Mohammed Al Akbari (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmeen (Al Wasl), Hassan Al Mahrami (Baniyas)

MATCH INFO

Manchester United 2 (Heaton (og) 42', Lindelof 64')

Aston Villa 2 (Grealish 11', Mings 66')

THE LOWDOWN

Photograph

Rating: 4/5

Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies

Director: Ritesh Batra

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz

MATCH INFO

Newcastle United 2 (Willems 25', Shelvey 88')

Manchester City 2 (Sterling 22', De Bruyne 82')

The Vile

Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah

Director: Majid Al Ansari

Rating: 4/5

FA CUP FINAL

Manchester City 6
(D Silva 26', Sterling 38', 81', 87', De Bruyne 61', Jesus 68')

Watford 0

Man of the match: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)

RESULT

Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')

MATCH DETAILS

Barcelona 0

Slavia Prague 0

While you're here
How tumultuous protests grew
  • A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
  • Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved 
  • Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
  • At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
  • Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars 
  • Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
  • An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital 
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The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

Price: from Dh122,745

On sale: now

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The specs: 2019 Mini Cooper

Price, base: Dh141,740 (three-door) / Dh165,900 (five-door)
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder (Cooper) / 2.0-litre four-cylinder (Cooper S)
Power: 136hp @ 4,500rpm (Cooper) / 192hp @ 5,000rpm (Cooper S)
Torque: 220Nm @ 1,480rpm (Cooper) / 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (Cooper S)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 4.8L to 5.4L / 100km

NINE WINLESS GAMES

Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)

Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal  (Oct 30, EFL)

Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)

Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal  (Nov 6, Europa)

Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)

Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)

Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)

Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)

Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)

10 tips for entry-level job seekers
  • Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
  • Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
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  • For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
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  • Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
  • Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
  • Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
  • Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
  • Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.

Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz

PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES

All times UAE ( 4 GMT)

Saturday
West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur (3.30pm)
Burnley v Huddersfield Town (7pm)
Everton v Bournemouth (7pm)
Manchester City v Crystal Palace (7pm)
Southampton v Manchester United (7pm)
Stoke City v Chelsea (7pm)
Swansea City v Watford (7pm)
Leicester City v Liverpool (8.30pm)

Sunday
Brighton and Hove Albion v Newcastle United (7pm)

Monday
Arsenal v West Bromwich Albion (11pm)

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
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Updated: November 30, 2022, 4:12 PM