A fire in Holborn has caused mayhem at London’s West End theatres. Read more…
An electrical fire believed to have started on Wednesday evening continues to burn into Thursday evening causing smoke to spew out of manhole covers in Kingsway, Holborn.
The cause of the fire is still to be determined with more than 35 firefighters and six fire engines still at the scene. Believed to be an electrical fault with underground cables until the actual source is established power lines are being turned off, which has caused mayhem to London’s West End with theatres having to cancel performances.
Last night effected shows included Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Lion King and Beautiful at the Aldwych theatre.
With many people already having travelled and the late nature of the postponement it has caused much disappointment for audiences and extra pressure on the box offices and agencies such as showsinLondon.co.uk. Spokesman Matthew Gardiner says it has been unprecedented in terms of so many shows being effected at such short notice, ‘We ask that people please be patient as we are trying to gather a lot of information from the authorities in a situation which has the potential to be hazardous. Safety is paramount and understandably without power and road closures some performances need to be cancelled at short notices, we are endeavouring to inform customers where we can. All ticket holders will be offered an exchange to another date. It is such a shame that this incident has occurred prior to the Bank holiday weekend which puts extra stress on everyone involved. We’d like to thank the firefighters for their continued efforts to get the situation under control’
A London Fire Brigade official said the fire has been contained in the tunnel but it had been difficult to tackle.
Matinee performances today (Thursday 2nd April) of Mamma Mia! at the Novello theatre and Beuatiful at the Aldwych theatre have both been forced to cancel.
