Benedict bedlam!
Barbican forced to clamp down on ‘Cumberbitches’ in row over late-night noise
BENEDICT Cumberbatch ends his performance as Hamlet each night with the words ‘the rest is silence’.
But now theatre bosses have been forced to introduce a curfew on the star’s fans – known as ‘Cumberbitches’ – after residents near London’s Barbican Theatre complained about the noise.
Up to 200 fans have been gathering outside the stage door when the play – the fastest-selling show in British theatre history – ends at 10.20pm, upsetting those living on the nearby Barbican Estate, where flats cost more than £1million.
The theatre has had to bring in measures to keep the noise to a minimum, including a promise to move on fans by 11pm and staff personally reminding the crowds to be quiet.
A Barbican source said the noise had become so unbearable for residents that Cumberbatch is even being encouraged to leave the theatre earlier and to spend less time signing autographs and posing for selfies with fans.
The source added: ‘Benedict is usually the last one out of the venue and he spends at least 15 minutes signing autographs and taking selfies, which raises the noise and encourages fans to wait for longer.’
On Thursday night, the 39-year-old Sherlock star didn’t emerge from the stage door at all. Although an usher warned fans that he was skipping his usual autograph session, dozens waited anyway and were told to quieten down three times in an hour. As well as problems with noise each night, there have also been large queues at the front of the theatre every morning when the Barbican releases 30 £10 tickets for that evening’s show.
Some fans have even been sleeping rough on the pavement to ensure they are first in line.
Last month, Cumberbatch, who will return to TV screens as Sherlock later this year, was forced to warn fans not to film him on stage, saying there was ‘nothing less supportive’ than seeing a red light flash in the auditorium as he is performing.
Asked about the 11pm curfew, a spokesman for the local council, the City of London Corporation, said: ‘It seems reasonable given “curtain down” time for the production.’
A Barbican Theatre spokesman said of the show, which closes on October 31: ‘We always aim to ensure the area is vacated by 11pm and noise is kept to a minimum.’