Bray Studios is a British film and television facility in Water Oakley near Bray, Berkshire. It is best known for its association with Hammer Film Productions. History Down Place Down Place, a large Thamesside house in the Berkshire hamlet of Water Oakley, was built in the 1750s for Richard Tonson, the Member of Parliament for Windsor and relative of publisher Jacob Tonson. After Tonson's death in 1772, the house was owned by the Dukes of Argyll and subsequently by John Barker Church. A later owner, Mr Hudleston, sold the property to Henry Harford in around 1807. The Harford family continued to occupy the house at the time of the 1901 census. At some point after this, the house was vacated except for the west wing where the Davies family resided. Subsequently, the main building largely fell into dereliction. Hammer Film Productions (1951–1970) In 1951, Hammer Film Productions bought Down Place, a location they had used in 1950 to film The Dark Light. The premises were largely derelict, and Hammer used the building's interior for filming before constructing a sound stage on the estate in 1952. The first full production at the studios was the 1951 film Cloudburst. In 1959, Columbia Pictures bought a 49% share in the studios worth £300,000 (£ in 2019); the agreement saw a co-production deal whereby Columbia would produce five films a year at the studios. As this five-year agreement ended, Hammer founder James Carreras sold shares in the company to Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC). This deal, made in 1963, saw Hammer obligated to move their production to Elstree Studios. At this time, the studio complex of Bray consisted of four sound stages ranging from to ; one of the stages contained a water tank. Other facilities included a stills department, dressing rooms, set design and construction departments, production offices and administration departments. Audio recordings at Bray suffered as a result of the studios being within the flight path of Heathrow Airport. The final Hammer film produced in full at Bray was 1966's The Mummy's Shroud; by November 1966 the move to Elstree was complete. In 1968, the last member of the Davies family left the house and the wing was converted into luxury flats. At the suggestion of EMI, as ABPC had become, Hammer sought to sell Bray Studios. Initially valued at £250,000 (£ in 2019), Hammer sold the site in November 1970 for