Hollywood studio Warner Bros has applied for planning permission to buy and refurbish Leavesden Studios, with a view to making the studio its permanent UK base.

Warner Bros has used the studio, which is in North London, to shoot the entire Harry Potter (pictured) series and projects including Tim Burton’s Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and The Dark Knight over the past decade.

If the planning application is successful, Warner Bros would be the first Hollywood studio to have a permanent production base in Europe. The proposal would also help to secure the future of Leavseden when shooting comes to an end on Harry Potter later this year.

The application, which has been made to Three Rivers District Council and Watford Borough Council, includes proposals to increase Leavesden’s visual effects, prosthetics, animatronics and film editing facilities as well as expanding the external production areas. It also outlines plans for public access, which would open up the potential for tours of studios, including the Harry Potter set.

A Warner Bros spokesperson said: “Warner Bros holds Leavesden Studios in the highest esteem as the home of our much-loved Harry Potter films. This proposal is central to our long-term plans to invest in the local production community, to create local and industry employment opportunities, and to continue the legacy of exceptional British filmmaking at Leavesden and across the UK.”

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