ABC Toowong

mikk · 25 Feb 2015, 7:32 am

Did anyone get pictures inside the old ABC studios at Toowong? The whole complex is just about all gone now apart from Middenbury house.

I remember pics elsewhere from someone who climbed the tower.

No+Pro · 25 Feb 2015, 8:03 am

Ive seen a few pics of this place floating around, looked like an interesting splore but has been a while since I have droven past. Thankfully that house is protected.
did you get a chance to go in yourself?

mikk · 25 Feb 2015, 10:23 pm

Kicking myself for not going in. There isn't much opportunity to explore an old TV station. The ABC Radio building is still there too but looks stripped of all equipment. Very good sound insulation on that building.

There's one tiny bit of the main building complex left in the corner of the site furthest from the entrance. It's the last bit for the machines to get to. I saw one semi interesting big poster/canvas left on the wall, I think to do with ABC starting to broadcast in colour but it would be destroyed now. Most of the interesting stuff would be gone prior to the building being pulled down. The main studio equipment was probably removed in 2006 when ABC moved out, which it's hard to believe was nearly 9 years ago.

I wonder what TV shows were made there. Construction was 1959 I believe, with many modifications over the years by the looks of things. The studio was the main studio for ABC Brisbane and sent a signal to Mt Cootha which then broadcasted it out to the public. It didn't quite make it to 50 years of full use, but ABC did come back to use it during the 2011 floods. The corner of the complex may have flooded then or just been on the edge of the floodwater. Next door by the river certainly flooded.

The 3 champagne flute tower apartment complex to be built on the site will include public access to a certain amount of the riverfront, so soon we can all walk around in there.