Opera’s secret weapon: Davina

IT is often seen as a recreation for the elite. But one opera house hopes stars such as Holly Willoughby and Davina McCall can bring in a wider audience.

Stuart Murphy, director of the English National Opera, is inviting popular celebrities to attend performances and then tweet about them, thus boosting ticket sales.

‘The effect has been amazing. A certain audience is like, “OK, they’re people I believe when they’re selling shampoo or love watching on a TV show... I’ll give it a go”,’ he told the Daily Telegraph. ‘And I think that’s one of the engines underneath our growth of the box office.’

He is said to have a chart which ranks stars such as comedian Alan Carr and a number of Chelsea footballers alongside the size of their social media following.

TV presenter Miss Willoughby attended the ENO’s annual gala last year.