Society Of London Theatre Reports Box Office Figures For 2016

By: BWW News Desk Mar. 31, 2017

The Society of London Theatre's 2016 Box Office figures demonstrate another robust year for the capital's thriving theatre industry.

Comparative highlights are:

Gross revenue of £644,719,639, up 1.7% compared to 2015
Sales generated VAT receipts for the Treasury of £107,453,273
Attendances of 14,328,121 (down 2.8% year on year but number of performances down 5.95% on 2015)
76.7% of available seats filled, up 4.1% compared to 2015 and a new record
Weekly attendance peaked w/c December 26 2016 at 439,103, a new record

As evidence of the ever increasing popularity of London theatre, the average price paid for a ticket was £45 (an increase of 4.68%) which suggests an increase in demand and a reduction in discounting.

Caro Newling, President of the Society of London Theatre, said:

"With our shows performing to record numbers, the box office figures for 2016 further cement London's place as a world-leader in theatre. Revenues are just one measure of success; what we are most proud of is that new generations of theatre-goers are drawn to the capital, home of the world's greatest creative talent, by our peerless ability to craft and tell the stories that resonate."

The Olivier Awards 2017 with Mastercard, the UK's most prestigious stage honours, will take place on Sunday 9 April. Visit OlivierAwards.com for more information. The ceremony will be broadcast on ITV on Tuesday 11 April at 8:00pm.

Comparative table of London theatre attendances and revenues 1986-2016

Data compiled from all theatres in full membership of the Society of London Theatre.

Year	Attendances	Difference on Previous Year (%)	Gross Box Office Revenue	VAT paid	Average No. of Theatres Open	No. of Perfs	No. of New Productions
2016	14,328,121	-2.81%	£644,719,639	£107,453,273	44	17,881	276
2015	14,742,588	- 0.02%	£633,778,537	£105,629,756	47	18,999	278
2014	14,744,887	+ 1.01%	£623,616,401	£103,936,067	46	18,975	280
2013	14,587,276	+4%	£585,506,455	£97,584,409	45	18,433	270
2012	13,992,773	+0.56%	£529,787,692	£88,297,949	45	18,448	305
2011	13,915,185	-1.73%	£528,375,874	£88,062,646	45	18,061	256
2010	14,152,230	-0.80%	£512,331,808	£76,304,737	46	18,615	264
2009	14,257,922	2.60%	£504,765,690	£65,839,003	45	17,899	260
2008	13,892,460	1.90%	£483,349,423	£71,988,212	45	18,275	241
2007	13,636,212	10.40%	£469,938,749	£69,990,878	44	17,455	243
2006	12,351,495	0.30%	£400,852,925	£59,701,500	43	16,912	268
2005	12,318,625	2.40%	£383,941,704	£57,182,807	45	17,406	221
2004	12,025,073	3.70%	£343,674,090	£51,185,803	43	17,235	225
2003	11,585,446	-4.00%	£321,485,161	£47,880,769	42	16,664	225
2002	12,064,100	2.80%	£327,971,671	£48,846,845	44	17,090	221
2001	11,734,767	1.60%	£298,989,461	£44,519,531	44	17,035	264
2000	11,555,178	-3.20%	£286,557,500	£42,668,412	43	16,633	252
1999	11,931,954	0.10%	£266,565,215	£39,691,560	44	17,089	265
1998	11,924,518	4.00%	£257,920,278	£38,404,330	41	16,018	207
1997	11,466,248	2.60%	£246,081,850	£36,641,587	39	15,568	195
1996	11,179,326	-6.40%	£229,016,639	£34,100,577	41	16,084	186
1995	11,937,671	6.90%	£238,740,636	£35,548,480	43	17,163	208
1994	11,163,023	-3.00%	£217,762,521	£32,424,839	41	16,063	208
1993	11,503,358	5.50%	£215,619,208	£32,105,700	41	15,922	198
1992	10,899,928	-0.10%	£194,772,331	£29,001,600	41	15,916	193
1991	10,905,395	-3.70%	£186,789,856	£26,919,150	39	15,508	192
1990	11,321,288	3.40%	£177,903,841	£23,204,849	40	15,887	187
1989	10,944,760	0.40%	£153,250,633	£19,989,213	42	16,436	237
1988	10,897,384	0.20%	£139,338,056	£18,174,526	43	16,970	228
1987	10,880,791	6.30%	£129,586,81

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