UK Theatre Launches Biggest 2-for-1 Ticket Offer For National Lottery Players

UK Theatre is launching Love Your Local Theatre, a new campaign encouraging the public to support their local theatres as they begin to recover from the impact of Covid. Over 100 theatres UK-wide have come together to join in on the effort and offer the biggest ever 2-for-1 ticket offer to National Lottery players who attend a show during the month of March.

The campaign, run by leading theatre membership body UK Theatre and made possible by the support of The National Lottery, is providing up to £2 million to subsidise an estimated 150,000 tickets nationwide. National Lottery players are being offered the chance to buy one ticket and get another free for participating shows as a thank you for the £30 million they raise every week for Good Causes, including support for the performing arts and theatres during the pandemic.

From classic musicals and beloved plays to family shows, comedy, dance and more, Love Your Local Theatre has brought together local theatres from Southend to Scarborough, Cornwall to Cardiff and Newcastle to Norwich, to give players the chance to experience the magic of live entertainment for less this spring, whilst giving back to their local entertainment communities.

In addition to the strong support from theatres across the UK, Love Your Local Theatre is also being supported by TV presenter, singer and Girls Aloud star, Kimberley Walsh, who has enjoyed performing at theatres and entertainment venues around the UK, many of which have received funding from The National Lottery.

Stephanie Sirr, President of UK Theatre, said: "We are delighted to be working with The National Lottery on Love Your Local Theatre, the first time UK Theatre members across the country have united for a ticket promotion of this scale. We should be hugely proud in this country to have such an extensive, vibrant and diverse range of regional theatres, all of which play a vital role in the theatre landscape of the UK and beyond. After such a turbulent two years, we want to shout about the fact that theatres are open and ready to reward audiences for their patience and loyalty - please visit your local theatre and help them continue to make brilliant creative work!"

Kimberley Walsh, TV presenter, Girls Aloud singer and star of the stage, said: "We are so privileged to have so many incredible theatres and entertainment venues across the UK. I have been lucky enough to perform in many of them. Without our local theatres, the face of UK entertainment would look very different and it's amazing The National Lottery is providing £2 million to support them. The entertainment industry was particularly impacted by the pandemic, and that's why the Love Your Local Theatre campaign is so important in supporting their recovery."

Sir Matthew Bourne, Choreographer and Artistic Director of New Adventures, said: "My dance-theatre company New Adventures prides itself on being truly national, and touring is built into the fabric of what we do. As we continue on our current UK tour of Nutcracker!, visiting theatres across the country, I am reminded of how vitally important it is that we celebrate and protect our much-loved regional venues, especially during this crucial time for the theatre industry as it begins a long recovery from the ravages of the pandemic. I support the Love Your Local Theatre campaign, and hope it helps bring as many people as possible back to their local theatres for the thrill of live performance."

Arts Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, said: "I'm delighted that The National Lottery is offering 2 for 1 tickets so that people can support their local theatre while enjoying an afternoon or evening out. As well as being great fun, a trip to the theatre can have an inspirational impact on people's lives - which is why we want everyone, no matter where they are from, to have better access to the arts. The Government has supported theatres throughout the pandemic, with more than £280 million in grants and loans from our Culture Recovery Fund, and initiatives such as 'Love your Local Theatre' can only help encourage audiences to get out and enjoy some brilliant productions."

Nigel Railton, CEO of National Lottery operator Camelot, added: "The UK's entertainment industry is world-class thanks to the huge variety of venues and projects across the four nations. National Lottery players raise £30 million a week to help fund Good Causes, many of which lie in the entertainment industry. The National Lottery is proud to have teamed up with UK Theatre to launch the Love Your Local Theatre campaign, giving local theatres the support they need to get on the road to recovery following the pandemic, whilst saying thank you to National Lottery players who have helped support many theatres during the last two years."

The Love Your Local Theatre promotion is available to anyone who is a National Lottery player and possesses a National Lottery ticket. From 1 February, players can purchase tickets at available performances taking place during the month of March. Keep checking the website for more venues being added each day.

Participating Theatres:

• Alhambra Theatre
• Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
• Beck Theatre
• Belgrade Theatre Coventry
• Birmingham Rep Theatre
• Bristol Hippodrome
• Chichester Festival Theatre
• Churchill Theatre Bromley
• City Varieties Music Hall
• Cliffs Pavilion, Southend
• Crewe Lyceum Theatre
• Curve
• Darlington Hippodrome
• Derby Theatre
• Edinburgh Playhouse
• Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham
• Exeter Northcott Theatre
• G Live
• Glasgow Kings' Theatre
• Glasgow Theatre Royal
• Grand Opera House Belfast
• Grand Opera House York
• Hall for Cornwall
• Harrogate Theatre
• Hastings White Rock
• Hull New Theatre
• Hull Truck Theatre
• Kings Hall
• Leas Cliff Hall Folkestone
• Leeds Grand Theatre
• Leeds Playhouse
• Lighthouse, Poole
• Liverpool Empire
• Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse Theatre
• Malvern Theatres
• Manchester Opera House
• Manchester Palace Theatre
• Marina Theatre, Lowestoft
• MAST Mayflower Studios
• Mayflower Theatre
• Mercury Theatre Colchester
• Midlands Arts Centre
• Milton Keynes Theatre
• New Theatre Cardiff
• New Theatre Oxford
• New Vic Theatre
• New Victoria Theatre Woking
• New Wolsey Theatre
• Newcastle Theatre Royal
• Northern Stage
• Norwich Theatre
• Nottingham Playhouse
• Octagon Theatre Bolton
• Orange Tree Theatre
• Oxford Playhouses
• Palace Theatre Redditch
• Palace Theatre, Westcliff
• Princess Theatre Torquay
• Queen's Theatre Hornchurch
• Richmond Theatre
• Rose Theatre
• Royal & Derngate
• Royal Exchange Theatre
• Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh
• Sheffield Theatres
• Sherman Theatre
• St George's Hall
• Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre
• Stephen Joseph Theatre
• Stockton Globe
• Stoke Regents Theatre
• Storyhouse
• Sunderland Empire
• Swindon Arts Centre
• The Alexandra, Birmingham
• The Chipping Norton Theatre
• The Marlowe Theatre
• The Orchard Theatre
• The Watermill Theatre
• Theatr Clwyd
• Theatre Royal Bath
• Theatre Royal Brighton
• Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds
• Theatre Royal Nottingham
• Theatre Royal Winchester
• Theatre Royal Windsor
• Torch Theatre
• Venue Cymru
• Victoria Hall Stoke
• Warwick Arts Centre
• Watford Palace Theatre (Palace Theatre Watford LTD)
• Wiltshire Creative
• Worthing Theatres and Museum
• Wycombe Swan
• Wyvern Theatre
• York Theatre Royal
• Yvonne Arnaud Theatre