Havelock House on the Ormeau Road in South Belfast is best known as the headquarters of Ulster Television. U.T.V., the Northern Irish terrestrial service, made its home there for more than 60 years. Before becoming a television studio, the original building, built in the 1800s, was a hemstitching warehouse. During the Second World War, it became a billet for troops in the city.
The 1943 Belfast Street Directory lists the occupier as His Majesty’s Government. Before this, the hemstitching plant belonged to James Thompson and Sons Ltd. They were linen and cambric handkerchief manufacturers.
Havelock House’s position near the River Lagan on Ormeau Road, Belfast made it an ideal place to station servicemen providing cover for the city’s bridges. Ulster Television acquired the premises at a cost of around £17,000 in 1959.