Pinewood: Home of James Bond boosted by Shepperton expansion

The expansion of the Shepperton film studio helped revenue at Pinewood surge to more than £100m during the first half of its financial year, it has been revealed.

The iconic film studio group, known for being the home of the James Bond franchise, saw its revenue jump to £100.4m in the six months to 30 September, 2024, up from the £68.4m it achieved during the same period in 2023.

However, the group’s pre-tax profit fell from £14.3m to £13.3m.

In its first quarter, Pinewood’s turnover totalled £49.3m for the three months to June 30, 2024, up from £35.6m.

However, the group’s pre-tax profit fell from £9.8m to £6.7m over the same period.

For its latest full year, Pinewood posted a revenue of £146.4m and an adjusted EBITDA of £86m.

In its latest half-year results, Pinewood said: “Whilst the group has witnessed growth due to studio expansions and a return to production activity following the strikes, market commentators point to a longer-term moderation in the growth of global content expenditure as the streamers place a greater focus on return on investment.”

The results come after Pinewood announced on 1 October that it planned to close its TV department in 2025.

Chief executive David Conway said: “Our results for the first half of our financial year continue to show significant year-on-year improvement following our successful growth programme, which was centred around the acquisition of Pinewood Toronto Studios and the expansion of Shepperton Studios.

“Globally, production activity is ramping up following the 2023 strikes, but it is evident that we will not be returning to the content production growth profile witnessed through the ‘streamer wars’ during the pandemic.

“In October, it was announced that we will be opening a new Independent Film Hub on the Pinewood site in 2025, for which we are already gaining significant market interest.”

Pinewood Group includes Pinewood Studios, Shepperton Studios, Pinewood Toronto Studios and Pinewood Dominican Republic.

The Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage at Pinewood was built in 1976 for the Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me.

In 2007, the new 007 Stage opened and has housed the Greek fishing village for Mamma Mia! as well as sets for the James Bond movie Spectre.