So, after years of controversial planning applications, rejections, appeals and protests, the clapperboard has finally snapped and Pinewood Studios has got the go-ahead to expand its kingdom of filmmaking.

The £200m plan will see the world-famous studios double in capacity over the next decade and a half – a move which it has argued is vital to see it remain a viable, successful concern.

As anyone who has followed the saga knows, the plan has provoked a furious reaction from those living nearby.

The thing that got objectors most hot-under-the-collar was the one that usually provokes the anger around Bucks – that the plan will involve development on the green belt.

As an unashamed film fan I, personally, find it exciting to think that the studios, which have seen so much cinematic history created there (the likes of The Red Shoes, Oliver Twist, the Bond series, Alien, Superman, to name a few), look set to enjoy a thriving future.

Of course, that is the view of someone who has the luxury of not living on its doorstep.

Last week’s announcement from the Chancellor that the second in the latest onslaught of Star Wars films will also be filmed there must have given an inkling that this announcement was on the horizon.

Of course, the wind might have been taken out of George Osborne’s triumphant sails the next day with Harrison Ford’s on-set broken ankle nabbing the headlines instead.

It is widely understood that one of Marvel’s upcoming superhero films recently couldn’t get space to film at Pinewood as the studios were at capacity.

It is a telling thing when what is likely to be one of next year’s big screen juggernauts has to be turned away, and probably as good an argument for the pro-expansion lobby as any.

Whatever you think of these modern blockbusters – let’s face it, few of them are Citizen Kane – a huge amount of technical skill and expertise goes into crafting them.

It is an exciting prospect for the county to think that such talents will be even more concentrated in Bucks in years to come.

But that is to take nothing away from those who fought their campaign against the development, who will understandably be distraught at yesterday’s news.

It’s easy to bandy around the word ‘nimby’ whenever anyone speaks up against such plans – particularly those living nearby the site.

But for anyone who values the green belt, those campaigners do a vital job.

No scheme of this size should be rubber-stamped through the planning process, and we should be grateful that so many people watch development plans like hawks, eager to pounce when the possibility that our green spaces will be run roughshod over arises.

But, equally, Pinewood is something a bit special to have within our county.

Again, it is easy to say this as someone who lives a few miles down the road, but this doesn’t seem quite the same as the prospect of many a concrete eyesore arising from the ashes of the countryside.

Jobs will be created, investments will be made, there will be greater spending in the local economy and, frankly, the world famous Pinewood brand is a hugely prestigious thing to have in Bucks.

So while this is going to be a bitter pill to swallow for many, it is also likely to be one that could well leave the county a healthier place in years to come, certainly for the creative industries. The last thing any of us should want is to see a studio with a legacy as rich as Pinewood fade to black.