The Littlewoods Studios development in Liverpool has taken a major step forward with a £17 million funding commitment from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s Strategic Investment Fund announced on Friday.

The ambitious £54 million regeneration project will transform the iconic Littlewoods Building on Edge Lane, Liverpool.

Having been derelict for years, the building is set to become a world-class film and television complex with the UK’s oldest film studios, Twickenham, already signed up as the anchor tenant.

Working in partnership to deliver the project, Liverpool City Council own the freehold of the building with Capital & Centric owning the long lease.

Liverpool is the most filmed English city outside of London, with 1,750 film days recorded in 2019 involving 324 productions including Sky Atlantic’s Tin Star and Netflix UK’s The Irregulars.

Liverpool Film Office, the oldest in the UK, is currently administering a £2m production fund to attract more filming in the city region and this week has welcomed back the start of a number of productions.

Adam Higgins, co-founder of developer, Capital & Centric, said: “This funding just goes to show what a huge opportunity Littlewoods Studios is.

“Not only is it a key project within the Liverpool city region’s economic recovery plan, it will deliver long lasting regeneration impacts for generations to come.

“A project of this scale was always going to be a challenge, but despite the impact of the fire we’ve had the full support of the City Council and Combined Authority.

“We know people have been frustrated that things haven’t moved more quickly but we’ve all been working really hard behind the scenes and with this funding in place we’re going to do everything we can to get on site before the end of the year.”

Jeremy Rainbird at Twickenham said: “The opportunity to operate Littlewoods Studios and deliver a production hub for Liverpool is an enormous privilege for us.

“We are delighted to be working alongside Liverpool City Council, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and Capital & Centric in the delivery of this landmark scheme.

“Indeed, this is a key strategic opportunity for our parent company Time+Space Studios in its evolution to curate the largest independent family of studios and creative communities in the country.

“Demand has never been greater for content in the UK and shows no sign of letting up.

“The future is creative.”