Work starts on BBC Wales drama village

Construction work has begun on the BBC's new drama production village in Wales, which will eventually be home to Doctor Who and Casualty.

The new site at Roath Basin, near Cardiff, will also house productions of Welsh drama Pobol y Cwm and The Sarah Jane Adventures, along with providing a base for a range of creative media firms.

Doctor Who and The Sarah Jane Adventures are due to move to the new studios in 2012, with the first episode of Casualty produced in Wales to air in the same year, reports BBC News.

The Roath Basin centre is part of the BBC's commitment to double the amount of its television network production in Wales by 2016.

The production base will also consolidate current sites at Llandaff in Cardiff and Upper Boat, near Pontypridd, along with various other locations around Wales.

Speaking yesterday, BBC Cymru Wales director Menna Richards said that the start of construction at the Roath Basin site is an "important milestone" towards creating a dynamic new community to benefit Wales.

"As a centre of excellence for drama it will bring a brand new buzz to this historic part of Cardiff and will offer fantastic facilities and filming space to some of the BBC's best-loved productions," she said.

Cardiff council leader Rodney Berman said that the BBC's new drama village will position the Welsh capital at the "forefront of the creative industries".

"Cardiff is already home to Doctor Who and Torchwood, with Casualty to follow and I know the drama village is seen by the BBC as part of its ongoing plans for increasing its production and development presence in Cardiff which can only be a massive boost for the city," he said.

"Cardiff is developing a very strong reputation as a creative industries hub. The development of this sector is becoming an increasingly important part of our local economy, benefiting not just the city but the whole of the region."

In January, it emerged that Casualty would move from its long-running home of Bristol to the new BBC Wales drama village.