Composer Andrew Lloyd-Webber spoke to The Telegraph earlier this week, warning that unless the British government provided both funds and a clear timeline for reopening cultural venues, many of London's iconic theaters might be sold off to the highest bidder - and that bidder might just be Chinese.
Lloyd-Webber himself, reputedly the world's richest composer, owns six theaters, and told The Telegraph that if coronavirus restrictions are not eased, his company will not "be able to survive in the current form beyond January and February next year."
He noted that, "The huge price paid for the Theatre Royal Haymarket [a reported £45 million, paid by the billionaire Sir Leonard Blavatnik] was because there was another bidder - from China. So it might not just be Chinese phone networks the Government has to worry about ... There are major buyers circling around who are not British and would like to own West End theatres."