July 2, 2007 11:35

John Peel's Maida Vale studio set to close

Axe hangs over The Smiths and Nirvana recording haunt

The BBC are planning to close their famous Maida Vale studios in west London, explaining it's not suitable for the “21st-century digital age”.

The closure of the studio, which was home to John Peel’s classic radio sessions, is part of a six-year “reprioritisation” plan for the BBC.

The plan is to sell it to a developer, although a final decision on the studio’s fate won’t be made until next year.

The Smiths, Led Zeppelin, Blur and Nirvana are a few of the rock heavyweights to lay down sessions at the studio, and bands such as The Fall have released full albums of material recorded there.

Being John Peel’s favourite band, Mark E Smith’s rock troupe recorded 24 sessions for him.

More recently the likes of Editors, Arcade Fire, The Kooks and The Coral recorded Maida Vale sessions for Radio 1 and 2 .

The BBC are yet to announce whether the studio will be replaced or not.