Tall order for little Nipper
GIANT STATUE OF HMV DOG SET TO BE UNVEILED AT OLD VINYL FACTORY
A GIGANTIC statue of Nipper the dog is set to be unveiled in Hayes as the latest building in The Old Vinyl Factory opens.
The famous dog, which has been used on the logo for HMV and was immortalised in the painting His Master’s Voice, was used by various record companies across the world.
The 5.5m statue was unveiled on Friday at a carnival held to celebrate the opening of The Record Store at The Old Vinyl Factory.
Formerly the building where all the masters for EMI records were pressed, the historic Art Deco building has been converted to a six-storey office building.
HMV, which uses Nipper on its logo, was owned by EMI until 2002.
The building is part of the £250m regeneration of the former EMI record factories in Hayes which includes living, working and leisure space.
The site is also home to the Global Academy, where students can learn for a career in the media.
The original building was designed by the same architects responsible for The Hoover Building in Perivale and Victoria Coach Station, some of London’s finest examples of Art Deco architecture. It has been extensively renovated and refitted by architects Allford Hall Monaghan Morris.
The development is being overseen by U+I which was also responsible for regenerating 11 acres of railway yard near Paddington station known as Paddington Central.
The Old Vinyl Factory will take advantage of Crossrail services which are due to start operating from nearby Hayes & Harlington station in 2019.
Commuters will be able to catch an Elizabeth Line train from the station to Tottenham Court Road in 22 minutes when the service is fully up and running, while Heathrow will be five minutes away.
The launch celebration for The Record Store building including rides, stalls, food and drink, live music, a vinyl market and more as well as the grand unveiling of Nipper.
Richard Upton, deputy chief executive for the developers said: “At U+I we have a responsibility to create things that are relevant, distinctive and local. Good development demolishes barriers and makes things better for everyone.
“What fascinated us was the potential of history at The Old Vinyl Factory and that had been missed by other developers.
“We did our research over many months and planned 650 homes anchored around a central street and beautiful squares, 600,000 sq ft of offices, that is, some 6,000 jobs.
“We made a promise to the council Greater London Authority to bring back 4,000 jobs and make it an amazing place to work.”