Paying public is the key to our cultural recovery
THERE is the real hope that sports stadia will soon be packed with fans, that legions of music-lovers will come together at festivals, and that audiences will once again cram into theatres following the tremendous success of pilot events.
The era of isolation is about to end and the eerie silence at so many shuttered venues will soon be replaced with cheers, laughter and applause.
Fifty-eight thousand people have attended a pilot event over the past months and just 15 have tested positive for Covid-19. The Brits at London’s O2 resulted in no coronavirus cases, and the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium recorded no incidents.
Not even the flashiest television is a substitute for a shared experience. It will be a cultural and economic disaster if sports and arts venues and organisations go to the wall; the Government has rightly launched a cultural recovery fund but the return of paying punters is the key to their survival.