Battersea Power Station’s Control Room A Joins Spaces & Stories Portfolio
A unique events space at the heart of London’s most iconic destination
Global full-service event space provider and platform, Spaces & Stories, is proud to announce an iconic addition to its portfolio of extraordinary event venues – the beautifully restored Control Room A at Battersea Power Station.
Control Room A, London’s newest and most unique event space, can host 250 guests for receptions, and up to 100 seated.
The room offers a one-of-a-kind experience in one of the Power Station’s original control rooms, which was built in the 1930s and is Art Deco in design. It is a unique and highly memorable space that is perfect for events such as art and immersive exhibitions, parties, fashion shows, product launches, brand events, dinners and receptions.
From the restored switchboards and control desks to the gold-coffered glass ceiling, this authentic space is an unforgettable setting, allowing adaptability and multiple configurations across 650sqm. The space also has a dedicated entrance, a lobby with an Art Deco lift, two breakout rooms and a reception room. Original teak parquet floors and marble finishes bring period glamour to the space.
Simon Tracey, Group Chief Executive Officer of Broadwick Live, said:
“Bringing culture and live events to innovative spaces is what drives the success of Spaces & Stories. Control Room A is the jewel in the crown of Battersea Power Station, a landmark on the London skyline and an important part of the city’s identity. We cannot be more excited to be part of this iconic project for London and host events in such a unique and historical space.”
Sam Cotton, Head of Asset Management at Battersea Power Station, said:
“Control Room A is an extremely special and one-of-a-kind space. With their experience hosting events in unique venues, we’re delighted to be working with Spaces & Stories to offer London’s newest and most exciting event space, which is steeped in history and will allow guests to get up close to the Control Room’s original dials and controls.”
Battersea Power Station is the centrepiece of a new ‘15-minute’ live, work and play neighbourhood, acting as a new hub for the local and wider communities, a new business quarter for the capital and a retail and leisure destination for Londoners and international visitors.
The Grade II* listed Power Station and Electric Boulevard, a new high street for London, opened to the public on Friday 14th October 2023, with the first tranche of shops, bars, restaurants and leisure venues.
Built between 1929 and 1931, Control Room A was the Power Station’s original control room; its controls and dials sending power across the capital from Carnaby Street to Wimbledon – even powering Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament from 1933.
As part of the regeneration of Battersea Power Station, the two banks of switchboards that run north-south along the western side of Control Room A have been meticulously restored alongside the large synchroscopes, which provided further information to engineers on duty when the Power Station was operational. A host of new restoration techniques, including digital scanning to exactly replicate the 1930s paint colours and 3D printing were also used to produce missing knobs and buttons of the control desks. The semi-circular control desk, which appeared in the Academy Award-winning film, The King’s Speech, is another original feature that has been painstakingly preserved and revived. Other major films that have been shot in Control Room A include Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.
At its peak, Battersea Power Station produced a fifth of London’s electricity, and Control Room A, later joined by Control Room B, which was finished in the 1950s, managed the distribution
of electricity generated by the Power Station’s turbines. Control Room A remained in use until 1975 when the 1930s half of the building, which includes Turbine Hall A, closed down. Battersea Power Station was fully decommissioned in 1983.
Battersea Power Station has worked closely with Historic England, Wandsworth Council, lead architects WilkinsonEyre and Lucas UK, the specialists who have led the restoration of Control Room A.
Spaces & Stories is Broadwick Live’s design-led full-service venue and location portfolio, offering an eclectic collection of out-of-the-ordinary venues and locations.
Control Room A at Battersea Power Station is the latest addition to Spaces & Stories collection of venues, which also includes Printworks London, Magazine London, Depot Mayfield, as well as a recently expanded venue offer with Grosvenor in London’s Belgravia and Mayfair.
As an established location and event provider with a difference, Spaces & Stories offers services that range from finding the perfect locations to working with clients to produce unforgettable bespoke events and experiences. This includes drawing on Broadwick Group’s award-winning production expertise to make client’s ambitious visions a reality, creating live events from product launches to art experiences, film productions or weddings.