Abbey Road Studios Granted Listed Building Status

The ongoing saga concerning the future of Abbey Road studios took a positive turn when a member of the British government stepped in and granted the premises listed building status, protecting it from any radical alteration.

On the advice of English Heritage, the Culture Minister Margaret Hodge granted the venue Grade II status - - the second highest status - - after acknowledging that it had "produced some of the very best music in the world."

While the listing doesn't ensure the future of the interior of the building, it does prevent any future owners from making any dramatic alterations. There had been fears the building could be converted from recording studios into apartments.

A statement from the Government said: 'The Abbey Road Studios have been listed in acknowledgement of their outstanding cultural interest and to ensure that recording artists for generations to come can continue to make and record music in the same rooms as musical icons of years gone by.'

The furore surrounding the news that the studios might have to be sold off to help ease owners EMI's financial burden has seen a wave of public support including composer Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber offering to buy the site.

The studios, which have been owned by music giant EMI since 1929, have been used by artists such as Radiohead, Pink Floyd and Dame Shirley Bassey. The Beatles, who recorded the vast majority of their material there, named their last studio album in honour of the premises.