We used to think that vandals came from Over There. Today, we breed them ourselves. One of the indisputable successes of Britain since the last world war has been the massive growth of the creative industries. They contribute enormously to the economy, to the prestige of this country and therefore to the pride that we can have in our country.
The Arts Council’s decision to, in effect, destroy the current workforce and achievements of some of London’s venues is unforgivable. There are several examples, but I am writing here about one specific case – the English National Opera. The London Coliseum is a magnificent building, which is very difficult to run successfully, but by any standards a keystone in London’s fair claim to be one of the two foremost cultural cities on the planet. The Arts Council must realise the consequences of what it is doing, which makes it even worse. ENO was given 24 hours’ notice of the decision on 3 November, before the public announcement. It had been decided to kill off one big institution by Easter and ENO was the target. Dr Harry Brünjes, chairman of ENO, told me: “It’s taken about 100 years to build up and 10 seconds to shut it down.”
