Televideo: Report issued to police after administrators of collapsed Sheffield broadcasting firm uncover ‘serious issue’

The latest administrators report for the firm said: “During the course of the Administration, a serious issue has come to light which has required some investigation by the company staff and the administrators and one of the consequences of these investigations is that a report will be made to the police.”

The administrators, from Sheffield-based Hart Shaw LLP, told The Yorkshire Post that a report has now been made to South Yorkshire Police, but said that they are unable to provide more details as the investigations are continuing.

Televideo fell into administration after struggling to bounce back from £5m in lost earnings during the pandemic. The firm employed 44 people at the time it appointed administrators.

Earlier this week, Walker Singleton held an auction of Telvideo’s assets including cameras, trailers and rigid trucks, with over 800 items for sale in total.

Walker Singleton said the auction had gleaned “worldwide” interest resulting in a 150 strong buyer pool across over 20 countries.

Stephen Jones, director at Walker Singleton, said: “The sector has suffered a number of recent high profile insolvencies and in turn the market was at risk of being saturated with high quality equipment, however following a global marketing campaign we were able to exceed expectation.”

Televideo appointed administrators Emma Legdon and Christopher Brown of Hart Shaw on 21 August.

The administrators said the company had suffered from the postponement and cancellation of live events including sport during the pandemic, for which many of its filming and broadcasting contracts were held.

The company also faced economic challenges including rising fuel prices, energy tariffs and staff accommodation, which the administrators said had a detrimental effect on day-to-day operations and profit margins.

They added that although Televideo was awarded a contract surrounding the funeral events of HM Queen Elizabeth II, the firm still lost revenue due to broadcasters choosing to cancel large-scale events during the period of mourning.

Administrators initially tried to find a buyer for the firm, receiving five offers out of a total of 16 expressions of interest.

A final offer fell through in September after an agreement could not be reached on the value of unencumbered assets, which the interested party valued at nil.

Televideo was first founded in 1976 as Meaddown Limited, and went on to change its name in the 1990s.

The firm has produced work for Sky Sports, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Eurosport and BT Sport, as well as BBC’s Match of the Day.