We’re pleased to announce that plans have been approved by the Royal Borough of Greenwich for a new LOOSE studio, our first purpose-built home, at London’s Design District on the North Greenwich Peninsula.

 

Housed in a specifically designed, converted shipping container with striking features and oversized, illuminated eyes, we’ll be joining the eclectic mix of buildings at Design District - London’s first purpose-built home for the full spectrum of the creative industries - with the mission to become a landmark for eclectic, experimental, ecstatic culture, community and creative collaboration. 

 

Opening in Spring 2025, LOOSE will host live shows, public activations and community-centric events. 

 

Laura Flanagan, Director at Design District, said: “LOOSE.FM captures what Design District is all about - community and creativity. Independent radio stations… provide an important platform for culture, conversation and connection. It’s our mission to keep the creative sector at the heart of the city and it is particularly rewarding to be able to house another kind of creative organisation at Design District, where we hope it will flourish.”

 

Designed in collaboration with architectural innovators CAUKIN Studio - creators of the Skip House project - the new studio design is functional, sustainable and silly. The LOOSE colour palette will be spread across repurposed building materials (like scaffolding) to create the impression of a big dumb face, with eyeballs animated by lighting designer Joshua Space up on the roof and a service window revealing our custom DJ booth, to mirror the function of a mouth.

 

“Our design is infused with wit and humour - where playfulness meets function - as an energetic reflection of LOOSE’s values: eclectic, experimental and ecstatic,” said Joshua Peasley, Co-Founder & Director at CAUKIN Studio. “We’re committed to the use of locally sourced materials, and this project is no exception—an exercise in creative re-imagining through industrial materials, housed in a striking converted shipping container.”

 

In line with the principles of reuse seen in CAUKIN’s Skip House, the building’s structure is made from a re-purposed shipping container, which has been assessed and insulated for acoustic performance. Its compact nature allows us to move it around the Peninsula in the years to come. Bringing some European-pavilion vibes, there’ll also be casual seating spread around the area for visitors to come chill and listen.

 

Mark Freeman, the founder of LOOSE, said: “Radio is such an important medium for creating a sense of connection and community. The move to Design District marks a big moment for everyone involved. Design District’s ethos, personality and vision align closely with our focus on giving emerging talent a platform to disrupt and innovate around culturally wide-ranging passions and interests. And CAUKIN’s design is the perfect representation of our joyful spirit and embrace of good times, which we think everyone needs right now.”

 

The station will be found at the centre of Greenwich Peninsula - that bit in the first few frames of the opening credits of Eastenders - opposite Central Park on the south-east of Design District, a very well connected spot that's mere footsteps away from The O2 Arena; North Greenwich station (Jubilee Line); the cable car to Royal Docks over the river; and the Thames Clipper service, too, for the more adventurous seafarers.

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We’ll be joining other architectural icons at the Design District like their rooftop basketball court, the delightful, bubble-formed Canteen food hall, and, our current favourite, Building B1, which looks like a stack of home-recorded C90 cassette tape cases. 

 

“Since launching, LOOSE has given loads of emerging DJs and creators the opportunity to record their first live shows, and we’ve attracted a lot of established names too,” Freeman added. “We’re really looking forward to seeing what we can achieve at Design District once the station is up and running, and what new avenues we can explore on the platform - especially around radio’s true power, which is in the imagination of the listener. And that’s limitless.”

 

We’re currently working on programming ahead of the studio’s launch this spring, on the music front we'll be welcoming back DJs and shows from our community, alongside a fresh cast of newcomers and a brand new speech and live podcast strand.

 

If you want in, please get in touch via this inbox: submissions (at) loose.fm 

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See you this Spring.

 

LOOSE CREW X