The Bookseller.com

1st December 2008

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HC to swap H'smith for Wapping

10.09.08 Graeme Neill

HarperCollins is to move from its Hammersmith base to become part of parent company News Corporation’s new premises in Wapping, east London.

The “media campus” will redevelop News International’s existing site and bring together News Corp businesses Dow Jones, Fox, MySpace and HarperCollins.

In an email to staff, Victoria Barnsley, HarperCollins’ chief executive and publisher, said that the move would “most probably” coincide with the ending of the publisher’s lease on its existing premises in 2015.

“It’s true that up until very recently, we did not expect to be part of this new media complex,” she said in the email. “But having heard James’ [Murdoch - chairman and chief executive of News Corp in Europe and Asia] vision for the future, I now believe that this is the best – and indeed – the only way to get to where we need to be as a 21st century publishing/content business.”

Architect Amanda Levete, who has designed the media centre at Lords’ cricket ground and the new Selfridges in Birmingham, is behind the new project. Barnsley said she will create a working environment that will “rewrite the rules -environmentally sustainable, uncompromising in its design, with some of the best facilities anywhere in London”.

She added to staff that the move would be “disruptive” but the publisher had time on its side to work on business solutions, including mobile and flexible working. “The prize for us is the chance to be part of an amazing new project,” she told staff. “We will maintain our own identity but benefit from working alongside the most talented, creative people in media today in a fantastically well-equipped, beautiful space.”

In a statement, Barnsley said: “Although some way off, I think that moving to an amazing, environmentally friendly, 21st century media campus with the best creative minds in Europe will really help differentiate HarperCollins. And I hope that authors, agents and the best talent in publishing will think so too.”

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