Petition launched to save London’s Battery Studios from demolition

A petition has been launched calling for the preservation of London’s iconic Battery Studios, which is currently under threat of demolition and redevelopment into residential flats.

Originally founded in 1967 as Morgan Studios, the Willesden studio has long been regarded as one of the UK’s most important recording environments, with a history spanning multiple eras of British and international music.

In the petition, organisers describe the studio as an “irreplaceable cultural landmark” and urge the industry, artists, and public to act before another historic creative space is lost.

“We are calling on the music industry, artists, and the public to stand together to protect this irreplaceable cultural landmark,” the statement reads. “The music created within its walls has shaped global culture and helped define the UK as a world leader in music.”

The petition also highlights a wider concern across the UK studio landscape, warning that recording and creative spaces are “being lost at an alarming rate”. It argues that demolition and redevelopment not only erase cultural infrastructure, but also carry a higher environmental cost than renovation and reuse.

“Demolishing and rebuilding carries a far greater carbon cost than preserving and modernising existing structures. Saving Battery Studios is not only culturally responsible – it is environmentally responsible,” the statement continues.

Organisers also point to precedent for protecting cultural recording sites, arguing that allowing the demolition would undermine efforts to preserve creative infrastructure in the UK.

“Importantly, there is strong precedent for protecting studios and creative spaces like this,” they add. “Allowing this demolition would go against that progress and send the wrong message about how we value our cultural assets. We urge the council to reject this proposal and instead support the preservation and continued use of Battery Studios as a world-class creative facility.”

The campaign has drawn support from artists like singer-songwriter Nadine Shah, who stressed the wider cultural impact of losing spaces like Battery.

“Places like Battery are ecosystems. They bring together artists, producers, engineers, and visionaries,” Shah writes. “When we lose studios like Battery, we’re not just losing real estate. We’re losing history. We’re losing opportunity. Beyond music, studios contribute to the cultural and economic life of a city. They attract global talent. They support local jobs. They help define a city’s identity. What kind of city do we want London to be?”

“Once these spaces are gone, they don’t come back,” she adds. “You can’t rebuild decades of history. You can’t recreate the atmosphere that made them special. You can’t replace the invisible magic that lives within their walls. Saving Battery Recording Studios isn’t just about preserving a building – it’s about protecting the future of music and those who create it.”

Battery’s legacy stretches back decades, with landmark recordings including Iron Maiden’s The Number of the Beast (1982) and Killers (1981), Talk Talk’s The Colour of Spring (1986), and The Cars’ Heartbeat City (1984) all tracked within its walls.

In the 1990s, the studio also hosted sessions for records such as Skunk Anansie’s Paranoid & Sunburnt (1995) and The Stone Roses’ debut album. Since 2005, the facility has been owned by producer duo Flood and Alan Moulder, who renamed it Assault & Battery Studios and have since worked on projects for artists including Foals, White Lies and Ed O’Brien.

Sign the petition at Change.