Music Company EMI have said that there are no plans to sell iconic British studio Abbey Road, despite a week of rampant speculation involving Andrew Lloyd Webber and English Heritage.

It was reported last week by the Financial Times that EMI were in the process of considering offers for Abbey Road from a number of parties following the company’s recently documented financial problems.

Andrew Lloyd Webber has publicly stated that he would be interested in purchasing the studio with an alleged offer of £30 million and English Heritage have issued a statement saying:

“English Heritage believes that the Abbey Road Studios possess outstanding cultural interest as the world's earliest purpose-built, and still the most famous, recording studios. Its importance as the leading force in popular music is perhaps greater today than ever and is revered internationally".

The organisation have called on the Government to act on a 2003 recommendation to grant the studio ‘Grade II’ listed status, legally defining the studio as a ‘particularly significant building of more than local interest’. This would potentially protect the building from being converted into residential properties in the event of a sale.

However, EMI have subsequently issued a statement denying that a sale is imminent and emphasising a commitment to revitalizing use of the studio, saying:

"In response to recent press speculation, EMI confirms that it is holding preliminary discussions for the revitalisation of Abbey Road with interested and appropriate third parties.

The statement continued: “Abbey Road studios had, for a number of years, been losing money and we have developed plans to revitalise the studios. These plans would involve a substantial injection of new capital."

Abbey Road, based in St John’s Wood in London is synonymous with the history of British pop culture and has a close association with acts such as The Beatles and Pink Floyd, both of whom recorded landmark albums there. In particular, The Beatles' album cover for ‘Abbey Road’ (pictured above) made the studio a major tourist attraction in the UK. However, it has been used less frequently by acts in recent years due to new technologies and increasingly more affordable smaller studios creating more financially viable options for emerging artists.