Andrew Lloyd Webber Refinances Really Useful Group

Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group is once again treading solid financial ground after a recent refinancing deal, according to Variety.

The Really Useful Group, according to the article, "refinanced all the company's debts through a £150 million ($281 million) banking facility with Bank of Scotland Corporate in a deal brokered by Riverhill Partners Limited...The group will maintain 100% ownership of its extensive music copywrights and other assets."

Over a year ago, speculation arose as whether or not Lloyd Webber--who is a theatre owner and producer as well as the Tony Award-winning composer of such hits as Evita and The Phantom of the Opera--would sell the Really Useful Group.  The company has been in the red, which led to Patrick McKenna and Ingenious Media being appointed as advisors for the company.  In July of this year, RUG earned some money by selling four of the London playhouses that it owned--the Apollo, the Duchess, the Garrick and the Lyric--to Nica Burns and Max Weitzenhoffer (who now comprise Nimax Theatres Ltd.).

Lloyd Webber also, in November, borrowed £35 million ($66 million) to buy out Bridepoint Capital, a private equity firm with whom RUG had co-owned the theatre chain Really Useful Theaters.

"I am very happy that we decided to invest further in the company last year rather than sell it.  We now have total ownership of all our companies in the Really Useful Group and Bank of Scotland has provided us with the ideal financing for the business. It is very much a family concern and because we now own 100% of it privately we can be quicker on our feet while taking a longer-term view," stated Lloyd Webber of the new financial package.

Lloyd Webber, as of late, has frequently been in the public eye after serving as a judge on the reality show "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria."  Its winner, Connie Fisher, stars in the upcoming London revival of The Sound of Music, which begins previews at the London Palladium on November 3rd and opens on November 15th.

For more information on the Really Useful Group, visit www.reallyuseful.com.