The future of the South Bank in jeopardy

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  • Serial_Apologist
    Full Member
    • Dec 2010
    • 37678
    #1

    The future of the South Bank in jeopardy

    The linked article below really emphasises the air of desolation on which I reported two days ago on the Stormy Weather thread on visiting the South Bank, while putting the issues in the starkest terms.

    The death of the Southbank Centre
    http://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-death-of-the-southbank-centre?utm_source=pocket-newtab-global-en-GB
    The one thing everyone agrees is that the Southbank Centre is in deep trouble. In May, the institution made an unusually public plea for government help. Management predicted the best-case scenario was ending the financial year with a £5 million loss, having exhausted all reserves, used the £4 million received from the furlough scheme and


    I note from the article that the Hayward remains open, though there were no indications such as people coming and going, or the optimistic kinds of invitation posters one would expect. Walking around the deserted Royal Festival Hall and peering through its dusty windows into the normally bustling interior to see nothing but empty chairs and tables and fading posters has to be be one of the most depressing experiences of my life. The complex, which has rightly acquired an iconic status not only for its historic and cultural importance, but as a free and friendly community hub for all classes and none, reduced to this! I really can't see any reason for shutting down the buildings in their entirety.
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  • oddoneout
    Full Member
    • Nov 2015
    • 9188
    #2
    Originally posted by Serial_Apologist View Post
    The linked article below really emphasises the air of desolation on which I reported two days ago on the Stormy Weather thread on visiting the South Bank, while putting the issues in the starkest terms.

    The death of the Southbank Centre
    http://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-death-of-the-southbank-centre?utm_source=pocket-newtab-global-en-GB
    The one thing everyone agrees is that the Southbank Centre is in deep trouble. In May, the institution made an unusually public plea for government help. Management predicted the best-case scenario was ending the financial year with a £5 million loss, having exhausted all reserves, used the £4 million received from the furlough scheme and


    I note from the article that the Hayward remains open, though there were no indications such as people coming and going, or the optimistic kinds of invitation posters one would expect. Walking around the deserted Royal Festival Hall and peering through its dusty windows into the normally bustling interior to see nothing but empty chairs and tables and fading posters has to be be one of the most depressing experiences of my life. The complex, which has rightly acquired an iconic status not only for its historic and cultural importance, but as a free and friendly community hub for all classes and none, reduced to this! I really can't see any reason for shutting down the buildings in their entirety.
    Money? Implementing 'Safe Systems of Working' tends to involve a lot of staff, the costs of which won't be met from the reduced income.

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