Scovell Estate repairs near completion after weeks without heating in Borough
Southwark Council expects the last 42 homes to be reconnected by the end of 14 October and will set out compensation once the work is complete.
HMV to leave the Oxford Street shop where it began in 1921, closing in March 2027
The music retailer blames a proposed rent doubling and big renovation costs. Just over 50 staff work at the store, which reopened only in November 2023.
Key facts
- HMV's store at 363 Oxford Street closes in March 2027
- HMV cites a proposed doubling of rent and large renovation costs
- Just over 50 staff affected; HMV hopes to redeploy them to two other London stores and head office
- HMV opened its first shop at the address in 1921 and returned in November 2023
HMV will close its flagship store at 363 Oxford Street in March 2027. The retailer says a proposed doubling of its rent, together with a large renovation bill, would leave the shop commercially unsustainable.
Just over 50 people work at the store. HMV says it hopes to move staff to its two other London shops and its head office, and is looking at ways to limit the effect on jobs while it searches for a new site.
Why HMV is closing its Oxford Street store
The address matters to the company. HMV opened its very first shop there in 1921. It shut the store in 2019 when the business went into administration, and an American sweet shop moved into the unit before the music chain came back in November 2023 under a new agreement with the landlords.
Just over three years after that return, HMV says the new costs make staying impossible. Managing director Phil Halliday said the shop held a special place in HMV’s past, and that reopening it in 2023 had been a big moment for the business. “It’s frustrating that it has been made commercially unviable,” he said.
The rent rise has been proposed shortly before Oxford Street is pedestrianised.
HMV sales are rising
The decision comes while trade is improving. Between January and September 2026, like-for-like sales across the group grew by 15%, HMV says. It expects combined shop and online revenue to pass £240 million this year. Last year the figure was £212 million.
HMV insists it still believes in high street shops and wants a new London flagship. “We’re actively looking for a new location in the West End,” Halliday said.
Key questions
When is HMV Oxford Street closing?
HMV says its store at 363 Oxford Street will close in March 2027.
Why is HMV closing its Oxford Street shop?
HMV says a proposed doubling of its rent and large renovation costs would make the shop commercially unsustainable.
What happens to the HMV Oxford Street staff?
Just over 50 people are affected. HMV hopes to redeploy them to its two other London stores and its head office.
Will HMV open another store in the West End?
HMV says it is actively looking for a new location in the West End.
Gipsy Hill tenant and her nephew in hospital after council house ceiling gives way again
Venesha Rose says repairs to her Lambeth Council home failed to fix the cause, and she has been raising leaks with the council since 2024.
Ombudsman again criticises HMP Wandsworth over emergency codes after 2021 death
No control room record shows when a code blue was called after Aktar Uddin was found unresponsive in his cell on Christmas Day 2021.
Hammersmith and Fulham weighs council tax rises of up to 150% to fill £160m gap
Under the largest option, a Band D bill would reach £2,522.50 a year before the GLA precept. The council leader says protecting services comes first.