Hidden TV and TV Lift Installation
A screen that appears only when you want it
When the TV Should Not Be the Room
A large black rectangle on the wall is the least interesting thing in most living rooms. It dominates the fireplace, competes with artwork and sits there switched off for most of the day. Hidden TV and TV lift systems solve that problem properly: the screen is fully functional when you need it and completely absent when you don't. For period homes, design-led interiors and rooms where the architecture is the point, it is often the single change that makes the biggest difference.
We install three broad families of solution. Furniture lifts raise the screen from inside a bespoke cabinet, so a sideboard becomes a TV unit and then becomes a sideboard again. Floor and ceiling lifts move the display vertically through a structural opening, giving a truly invisible result with no furniture footprint. Mirror and art displays conceal the screen inside an object that belongs on the wall, so a bathroom mirror or a framed canvas doubles as a 4K display.
The mechanism is only half the job. A lift that rises beautifully but leaves a cable trailing across the floor is a failed installation. Every system we fit is designed as a complete assembly: cable chains that travel with the screen, power and signal routed through the cabinet, floor or wall, sources located in a ventilated rack elsewhere in the property, and control programming that sequences the lift, the doors, the display and the lighting in the right order every time.
We have installed hidden TV systems in Georgian townhouses in Kensington, glass-walled new builds in St Albans and converted barns in the Cotswolds. The engineering challenge changes with each one, from finding 900mm of void beneath a suspended floor to fitting a lift inside a listed drawing room without touching the original joinery. If you can describe the room, we can tell you which approach will work and what it will involve.
What We Conceal
Furniture TV Lifts
The screen rises from inside a bespoke sideboard, dresser or foot-of-bed unit. Doors open, the lift extends, and the cabinet becomes furniture again when it closes.
Floor Pop-Up Lifts
The TV emerges vertically from an opening in the floor. Concealed when down, dramatic when up. Ideal for media rooms, garden rooms and end-of-bed positions.
Ceiling Drop Lifts
A motorised mechanism lowers the display from a ceiling void into the room. Perfect for double-height spaces, under-gallery positions and open-plan kitchens.
Mirror TVs
A two-way mirror glass panel that looks like a plain mirror when off and a bright 4K display when on. Bathrooms, dressing rooms and hallway walls.
Art & Framed Displays
Canvas or framed artwork that hides a screen behind it. Motorised versions roll or swing the art aside, so the wall reads as a gallery until you watch.
Motorised Swivel Mounts
Articulated arms that rotate the display between rooms or viewing positions, retracting flat to the wall and turning the screen away when not in use.
Choosing the Right Mechanism
Furniture lifts for rooms you cannot cut into
A furniture lift is the most versatile option and the one we specify most often in London. The mechanism sits inside a cabinet sized to your screen, and the top of the unit opens as the display rises. Because the joinery is designed around the lift, the cabinet can be finished in any veneer, lacquer or painted colour to match your existing furniture, and it can incorporate drawers, shelving or a soundbar bay around the mechanism.
This is the right answer for listed and period properties, for rooms where the floor is solid or the ceiling void is shallow, and for clients who want a reversible installation. It also gives you a defined footprint, which is often easier to design a room around than a screen that appears from nowhere. Standard strokes cover screens up to around 75 inches, with larger mechanisms available for 85-inch displays in taller units.
Floor and ceiling lifts for a truly invisible result
If you want no furniture at all, a floor lift is the cleanest solution. The screen rises vertically out of an opening cut into the floor, sits at viewing height, and lowers back flush when finished. A lid closes over the opening, so the floor reads as uninterrupted. The requirement is a void beneath, typically 700 to 900mm deep plus clearance for the mechanism, which is usually available above a basement, in a room over a garage, or in a new build with a formed floor build-up.
Ceiling lifts work the other way. The display is stored in a void above and descends into the room on a motorised column or scissor mechanism. They suit double-height spaces, rooms beneath a landing or gallery, and open-plan kitchens where a screen can drop over an island. Both approaches need early coordination with your builder or joiner, and both need careful detailing so the aperture is finished perfectly, because the whole point is that the opening disappears.
Mirror and art displays where there is no space at all
When a lift is impractical, a mirror or art display hides the screen inside a wall-mounted object. Mirror TVs use two-way glass over the panel: the surface reflects like a normal mirror when the screen is off and shows a bright 4K image when it is on. They are the standard choice for bathrooms, dressing rooms and hallway walls, and modern panels are bright enough to be genuinely usable in daylight. Art displays go further, using a framed canvas that hinges or rolls aside, or a printed overlay treated to let light through, so the wall reads as a gallery until you press play. We specify the panel, the glass and the frame together, because the finish of the glass is what determines whether the object looks convincing when it is switched off.
Where a Hidden TV Belongs
Living Rooms
A lift sideboard keeps the focal wall clear. Art, a fireplace or a window becomes the centrepiece instead of a black rectangle.
Master Bedrooms
Foot-of-bed lifts rise from a low unit at the touch of a button and retract flush. No screen above the bed, no compromise on the view.
Media Rooms
Floor pop-up lifts let a media room double as a study or snug. The screen appears for film night and vanishes afterwards.
Kitchens & Open Plan
Ceiling drops and island lifts bring a screen down into the room for breakfast news, then return it out of sight.
Bathrooms & Dressing Rooms
Mirror TVs turn a bathroom wall into a discreet display. Steam-rated glass and sealed housings handle wet environments.
Period Properties
Where wall mounting would spoil original panelling or plasterwork, a furniture lift preserves the architecture entirely.
What a TV Lift Costs
Indicative figures for a supply-and-install project. The mechanism is usually the smaller part of the budget once cabinetry, structural work and integration are included.
Every project is quoted individually after a free survey. Figures exclude VAT and any building works carried out by others.
Brands We Specify
Hidden TV & TV Lift FAQs
What is a hidden TV?
A hidden TV is a television that disappears from view when it is not being watched. The two main approaches are concealment furniture and mechanical lift systems. Concealment furniture hides the screen inside a bespoke cabinet behind doors that open and close automatically. Mechanical lift systems raise the screen out of a cabinet, up through the floor or down from the ceiling, so the room returns to a normal living space when the TV is off. There are also mirror and art TVs, where the display looks like a mirror or a framed painting until it is switched on. All three approaches are installed by our team, and choosing the right one comes down to your room layout, budget and how much wall or floor space you can dedicate on a permanent basis.
How much does a TV lift cost in the UK?
As a guide, a good quality motorised TV lift mechanism alone costs roughly £1,200 to £3,000 depending on stroke length, load rating and brand. A complete installation with a bespoke cabinet, lift mechanism, cable management, power and integration into your control system typically lands between £4,500 and £12,000 for a residential living room. Floor and ceiling lift systems with structural work cost more, usually £8,000 to £20,000 because they involve joinery, structural openings and making good. Mirror and art TVs range from around £2,500 for a smaller screen to £8,000 or more for large formats. We quote each project individually after a site survey, because the mechanism is usually the smaller part of the cost compared with cabinetry and building work.
Can a TV lift be retrofitted to an existing room?
Yes, and most of our installations are retrofits in existing London and Home Counties homes. A furniture lift is the simplest retrofit because it sits inside a cabinet and requires only a power supply and a clear path for the cable to the screen. A floor lift requires cutting an opening in the floor and forming a below-floor void, which is straightforward where there is a suspended timber floor with space beneath. Ceiling lifts require a void above, which works well under a landing, in a double-height room or beneath a dropped ceiling. Where space is genuinely tight, we use low-profile lifts with a shorter stroke, or tilt-and-lower mechanisms that reduce the required void depth. Every retrofit begins with a survey to confirm what structure you have.
How do you hide the cables and equipment?
Cable management is designed before anything is ordered. Lift mechanisms have an internal cable chain that keeps power and signal cables tidy and avoids strain as the screen travels. Cables then run through the cabinet, wall or floor to a concealed equipment location, typically a ventilated rack in a cupboard or understairs space. Sources such as Sky, Apple TV, Blu-ray and games consoles live in the rack and are distributed over HDBaseT or IP, so no equipment is visible near the screen. Power outlets sit inside the cabinet rather than on the wall. Where a lift is fitted to a solid floor, the cable route is chased and made good so nothing shows at floor level.
Can a hidden TV be integrated with Control4 or Crestron?
Yes, and this is where the feature really earns its place. Integration means one command, for example "Lounge TV on", raises the lift, opens the cabinet doors, switches the display on, selects the correct input and dims the lights. Pressing "TV off" reverses the whole sequence and waits until the screen has fully retracted before closing the cabinet. This sequencing matters: a lift that closes before the screen is down will damage the display. We program the interlock logic, add safety cut-outs so the mechanism stops if it meets an obstruction, and expose the lift as a named device in your Control4, Crestron or Rako system so it behaves like any other part of the room.
Do hidden TV lifts work in period and listed properties?
They do, and period homes are where they make the most visual difference. In listed or conservation-area properties, we avoid cutting original fabric wherever possible. That usually means a furniture lift rather than a floor lift, so the mechanism sits inside a piece of bespoke joinery that can be removed without trace. Where a floor or ceiling void is not permissible, a rise-from-sideboard design or a mirror TV delivers the same disappearing effect with almost no structural change. We work with your conservation officer where consent is needed, and we plan fixings and cable routes so nothing original is damaged.
Which areas do you cover for hidden TV installation?
We install hidden TV and TV lift systems throughout London and the Home Counties. In London we cover Kensington, Chelsea, Mayfair, Belgravia, Knightsbridge, Notting Hill, Hampstead and Canary Wharf. In Hertfordshire we serve St Albans, Harpenden, Radlett, Rickmansworth and Potters Bar. In Surrey we cover Guildford, Weybridge, Cobham, Esher and the Wentworth Estate. We also work in Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and the Cotswolds. Every project starts with a free survey and a fixed-price written quotation covering joinery, mechanism, installation and integration.
Want the Screen to Disappear?
Book a free survey. We will assess your room and recommend the right lift or concealment system for it.