Lights, Camera, Action! Cleaning Film House…
In the heart of Soho, construction for what would become Film House, started in 1929 on the site of the former Faraday Electrical Works. The impressive Art Deco building soon became the beating heart of London’s ‘film row’ during the late 1940s, when over 100 film companies could be found occupying the street including Warner Brothers, the Rank Organisation, 20th Century Fox, and Hammer Productions.
142 Wardour Street (Film House) soon became the headquarters of Associated-British Pathé film company and would later also become the UK headquarters for Columbia Pictures, and Universal Pictures. In later decades, when film production companies moved out of the area, the building became the headquarters for HMV Group plc. After HMV fell into administration in January 2013, the building was converted into a flexible work and office space.
In 2019 planning started on the redevelopment of Film House, originally planned to become a high end, luxury hotel. After a protracted planning process, construction started on updating and adding additional floors for an inspired office and retail development. Thomann-Hanry® was instructed to clean and make minor repairs to the retained Art Deco façade.
Cleaning Film House… Take Two
Years of building works, wet weather, and urban pollution had taken their toll on the Portland stone façade of Film House, using the low-pressure, non-abrasive façade gommage system, Thomann-Hanry® was able to effectively and meticulously clean the façade, all without the need for intrusive, expensive, and unsightly scaffolding, in only 4 days. This is one of the main reasons why the multi-award-winning Thomann-Hanry® has gained the reputation of being the façade experts for historic and commercial properties.
The low pressure, water-free, chemical-free, aggregate-free cleaning solution offers both historical and commercial buildings a way to revive and refresh a building’s façade without the worry of structural or material damage. The gentle cleaning process was the perfect solution to clean both the intricate details and surface, across the different substrate types.
Cleaning Film House… That’s a wrap!
Thomann-Hanry® was able to meticulously clean to peel back the years to help reveal the original façade as it would have been envisioned by the Edwardian architects. As part of the long-term protection of the building’s façade, an application of AquaFEND® F was applied to help reduce surface soiling and biofilm growth.
“Being able to help to breath new life into a building which was instrumental in helping to build the UK’s £ multi-billion film industry has been a pleasure. The results which the team at Thomann-Hanry® have been able to deliver to Film House have been impressive and cements our reputation as a leader in the commercial and historic façade cleaning industry.”