Discussions about a takeover of St David's Hall by AMG have been ongoing for a number of years, a Freedom of Information request has revealed. Cardiff Council, which owns Wales' national concert hall, has received a proposal from major music group AMG which operates the O2 Academies and has a huge number of venues across the UK.
A FOI request reveals that a meeting was held on March 22, 2021 titled "SDH and Motorpoint" to discuss potential Cardiff city centre venues for AMG to "deliver its 'Academy' product", which appears to show that the council was considering the proposed takeover as early as 2021. Cardiff Council has since confirmed that it has been talking to AMG since 2020 and received an initial offer from the company in December 2021, before discussing it with key stakeholders of the venue in early 2022.
Ben Herrington, who has worked at St David's Hall for over six years, including through the pandemic, said the FOI "confirmed what we already knew as fact." He said: "We knew this wasn't a recent approach. This FOI proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that this happened.
