Law firm Davenport Lyons has ditched plans to take the BBC’s lease assignment for 80,000 sq ft at Henry Wood House, W1.
The company has ended 10 months of negotiations with landlord Derwent London and the BBC, which has around 50 years left on its lease for the 1960s office block.
Talks have broken down over costs affiliated with refurbishing the building and rises in other overheads costs, Estates Gazette understands.
Davenport would have paid £2.1m pa for Henry Wood House, subject to rent reviews every 21 years, the next one falling in 2027. It was planning on using about 35,000 sq ft and subletting the rest of the space.
It had been looking at the property since 2011 but entered serious negotiations in August last year – around the same time its current office at 30 Old Burlington Street, W1, was bought by Native Land for redevelopment.
The BBC left the property at 3-7 Langham Place last year to consolidate into nearby New Broadcasting House.
Davenport, advised by Teacher Marks, has now launched a fresh hunt to find new West End offices. One property it has looked closely at is Legal & General Property’s 6 Agar Street, WC2.
Lambert Smith Hampton is advising the BBC.
joanna.bourke@estatesgazette.com
