Pinewood expansion plans rejected

Plans to expand the UK's Pinewood Studios facility have been rejected by South Bucks District Council.

The £200 million ($332 million) Project Pinewood, which aimed to place permanent movie sets and 1,400 homes across 110 acres, was turned down by the planning authority after local residents campaigned against the historic studio moving on to a conservation site.

"To have allowed this development in the greenbelt and Colne Valley Park would not only have caused significant degradation to the local environment and quality of life of local residents but would also have set a precedent, potentially undermining the council's future ability to resist inappropriate greenbelt developments elsewhere in the district," said Jacquetta Lowen-Cooper, chair of the planning committee.

Andrew Smith, director of corporate affairs for Pinewood Studios Group, said: "We feel the benefits of skills, training, jobs, affordable homes and growth presented by this innovative project demonstrate the very special circumstances to develop land in the greenbelt. We remain committed to the vision of this project."

The Pinewood Studios Group, which includes Shepperton and Teddington Studios, will appeal the decision, says Variety.

Meanwhile, an empty 400-acre site in Longbridge, near Birmingham, has allegedly been sounded out as a potential alternative for the new development.

"The problem is, London is full - South Buckinghamshire doesn't want Pinewood's extension. We do," said Birmingham-based screenwriter Jonathan Stuart-Brown. "The West Midlands is saying to Hollywood, 'We can do it, and we can do it cheaper than London'."

Movies that have filmed on Pinewood stages include the James Bond series, Superman and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace.