Prior to the construction of the stables building that we know today, the site was originally erected to house members of the craft guilds, Framework knitters company and Ironmongers.

Two main cottages were built on Kingsland road, which housed eight individuals.

These almhouses remained until the turn of the 20th century when they were sold. You can learn more about this here.

Image courtesy of The Trustees of the British Museum, 1854.

The building, in it’s most recent iteration, was built sometime around the turn of the 20th Century. It was owned by TE Carwadine and Sons Limited at this time. It is believed that they operated a distribution business from the property.

The building was originally in two parts, one section an administrative office, and the other stable blocks and a carriage shed. The locaion made it ideal for the transportation of good to and from Bishopsgate and Liverpool Street Station.

The image featured here is Kingland Road in 1906.

Image courtesy of London Metropolitan Archives (City of London Corporation)

It is believed that around this time the building stopped being used for the transport of goods. The specifics of what the building was used for over the next 60 years is a bit foggy, but we know it has had a varied history.

The building has been used for mainly industrial processes including the manufacture of labels, film photographic development, a film photography studio, and a commercial vehicle hire depot.

For many years it sat as a construction site until Graeae took it over.

Throughout the first 25 years of Graeae’s history, the company has operated without a permanent home. While there was access to various office spaces throughout the 80s and 90s, these were often not particularly accessible, and they did not contain a rehearsal space.

Throughout the early 2000s, Graeae had two unsuccessful Capital project bids. However, the company knew that without a permanent home that met the access needs of their artists, Graeae would become stagnant.

A third Capital project bid was successful and Graeae was able to begin construction on The Hackney Omnibus, which would become the Bradbury Studios we all know today. Graeae received a £1.78m grant from Arts Council England through the Lottery programme. Further funding came from the Bradbury Foundation, Clothworkers’ Foundation, John Ellerman Foundation, Wolfson Foundation, Equity, D’Oyly Carte, Goldsmiths, Coutts, Hackney Parochial Charities, Bruce Wake Charity, Awards for All, Camelot and Margaret Guido Foundation. There were also a number of personal donations.

Construction began January 2008 and continued into spring 2009. The building was redesigned by, Artillery, architecture & interior design. When planning for the space, Graeae and Artillery wanted to think beyond the bare minimum of DDA accessibility requirements and find new ways of integrating access into design.

In January 2009, the company and some special guests got their first glimpse into the future of the building. The event was attended by a number of prominent individuals, including our Patron, Richard Wilson. This party marked the beginning of the buildings opening process.

The renovation completed in Spring 2009 and led to a fabulous grand-opening on 22 July.

The renovation created several innovative spaces within the building.

First, the foyer which serves as not just a lobby, but a networking space for individuals using the space to cultivate community.

Second, a one-of-a-kind rehearsal space, with a sprung floor, sound system, accessible lighting rig, and accessible changing room. This space was available to hire and has been utilised by dozens of incredible theatre companies and arts organisations over the years.

Third, the creative hub, which is one of our most used spaces in the building, was created to be  a meeting room or workshop space.

Fourth, is the Mezzanine level of the office which was designed to invite additional arts organisations into the building. For several years now, Access All Areas have been our upstairs neighbour, making Bradbury Studios an even larger Deaf, Disabled, and Neurodivergent-led arts hub.

There are two additional spaces of the Library and the Living Room which function as additional breakout and respite spaces.

For the last sixteen years, the building has served the Graeae Collective and larger Disability-led arts community well.

In May 2024, we announced that we had been awarded a total of £590,000 from Arts Council England, the Bradbury Foundation, and the Foyle Foundation. £445,000 of this is from the Arts Council Capital Investment Programme. This money has been raised to make major improvements to our Bradbury Studios space in Hoxton.

This renovation will update a lot of the wear and tear that the building has gone through. It will also make the building even more accessible, fixing issues that have been brought to our attention by our wider team of artists, as well as our core staff. The ultimate goal of this project is to create a space that can serve as a major hub for creativity and access.

Throughout the end of 2024, the Graeae team cleaned out decades worth of documentation, photos, videos, and technology. We did this as sustainably as possible, recycling as much as we possibly could. We will share more about this process over the coming months.

January:

Construction has begun as of January 6th!