Metrocolor
US film processing company with operations in the UK, the final laboratory at Highbury, London.
1912 The business was first established in Holborn, London, under a different name.
1922 After expansion, a new laboratory was built at Finsbury Park, which later handled a large proportion of BBC film material.
1937 Another laboratory was established in Soho, London, which processed newsreel for British Movietonews.
1947 A sound studio was set up in Maida Vale, London.
1968 a new laboratory was opened at Highbury, partly in order to accommodate the growth of colour processing.
By 1970 the premises at Finsbury Park and Maida Vale had been closed and staff and facilities were transferred to either Highbury or Soho.
1987 After a series of name changes the company was renamed Metrocolor London Ltd.
1980s Ownership of Metrocolor and a US laboratory located in Hollywood (known as the MGM laboratory) passed to a succession of US media companies, Turner Broadcasting System Inc and Lorimar.
1989 Acquired by WCI.
1990 WCI merged with Time Inc to create TWI.
1993 The Soho premises were closed, leaving Highbury as the sole remaining production facility.
1997 Acquired by Carlton Communications
See Also
Sources of Information
- competition commission report [1]