Twickenham Film Studios’ knight in shining armour has  been announced today as “film-fanatic” Sunny Vohra, the new managing director of Twickenham Studios Limited (TSL).
Despite not having experience in the film industry, his passion for movies has led the west London-based businessman to put money toward the site and head the new company.
TSL has been set-up by Mr Vohra for the management and running of the studios, where films including War Horse and Hard Day’s Night have been produced.
The long-awaited announcement for the buyer of Twickenham Film Studios (TFS) will be a great relief to many residents and celebrities who fought to save the 99-year-old film site from property development.
Steven Spielberg, Martin Freeman and Ian McKellen stated their strong feelings to keep the studios alive and were among more than 4,000 people to sign the Save Twickenham Film Studios (STFS) petition, created by post-production supervisor and Twickenham resident, Maria Walker.
The campaign group will now become the Friends of Twickenham Film Studios under the direction of Rob James, as Ms Walker has been appointed as the chief operating officer for the studios in a newly created position.
In this capacity she will be responsible for sales, marketing and ongoing business development. The enthusiasm and commitment Ms Walker expressed for the studios throughout her campaign was said to have impressed Mr Vohra, who signed the STFS petition himself.
Ms Walker said: “I am extremely honoured to have been given this opportunity to reactivate the studio and am looking forward to the challenges ahead.
“It is our intention to work closely with all parties to provide a facility that enhances the local area.
“TFS has been delivering excellence to the industry for almost one hundred years and in my role I want to see that continue.”
The post-production supervisor has a long-standing association with the studio stretching back nearly 30 years.
The new owners said they would provide increased employment opportunities with investment in additional staff, improve and add staff to the IT department and upgrade the security system, which Ms Walker said at the moment deterred big film companies because not secure enough.
Mr Vohra will make a formal address at the studios on Tuesday, July 24, at Twickenham Film Studios.