The former cabinet minister who “gifted” one of Britain’s most prestigious venues to the English National Opera (ENO) has said he must have been “mad” to have done so.
David Mellor said that while he thought begging the prime minister to buy the Coliseum for the ENO had been “a major contribution to the cultural life of the country”, he now thought it was an “act of stupidity”.
His intervention has been sparked in part by the decision of the ENO management to lease out the Coliseum in London for almost half the year.
In the forthcoming season the ENO, which receives a £12 million annual subsidy, is putting on 85 performances at its home from September 28 until April 13. “It is a total