Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
#0Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 3:06am
Buy-out offer for Webber empire
Mon Jan 17, 3:20 PM ET
Lord Lloyd-Webber, the multi-millionaire musical composer, has received a potential buy-out offer for Really Useful Group that could value his entertainment business at more than £500m.
The theatrical impresario behind shows such as Phantom of the Opera and The Woman in White has appointed financial advisers to consider options for the business, which also has a large stake in 11 of London's top West End theatres.
An outright sale would cover production and publishing rights to the five most successful musicals in modern stage history.
Any bid for Really Useful Group, in which Lord Lloyd-Webber holds a 100 per cent stake, would also reflect the value of royalties, copyright, films, recordings and merchandising.
Company officials declined to comment on the talks or bid approaches yesterday. But they confirmed that Ingenious Media, the boutique advisory business, was reviewing Really Useful Group's future.
Patrick McKenna, chairman of Ingenious, is leading the strategic review. Mr McKenna is a former chief executive of Really Useful Group, which was briefly listed on the London stock exchange in the early 1990s.
Mr McKenna on Monday said the process was at an early stage and no final decisions had been taken. It is understood, however, that the review will be completed within weeks.
The review follows an unsolicited approach from a leading US corporation, which Really Useful Group on Monday declined to name, and a separate offer for theatres owned by Really Useful Theatres, its partly-owned affiliate. Bridgepoint Capital, the private equity group that owns 50 per cent of Really Useful Theatres, was last night said to be considering alternative options for the business.
"Lord Lloyd-Webber and his partners are delicately considering the future of these assets, including valuable copyrights, real estate and ticketing operations," according to one person familiar with the situation.
The musical composer would need Bridgepoint's approval before monetising theatre assets such as London's Palladium, The Palace and Theatre Royal.
Current talks on the theatre business are focusing on four "playhouse" venues the Duchess, Apollo, Garrick and Lyric as well as a wholesale deal.
Sir Cameron Mackintosh, who already owns several London theatres, and Broadway producer Max Weitzenhoffer were on Monday named as potential bidders for the theatre and ticketing assets.
But Really Useful Theatres, which made a £6.4m operating profit in the financial year ending June 27, refused to confirm their interest.
Courtesy of FT.com
jo
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#1re: Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 4:19am
I can't remember the details now, but didn't the REALLY USEFUL GROUP or Andrew Lloyd Webber sold part of the empire years ago and then re-purchased it again? And that he had occasionally sold some of his rights on his works and then repurchased them again ( e.g., Phantom of the Opera).
Of course the empire now includes many of London's venerable theaters like the Palladium and the Palace theatre ( home of Les Mis for a very long time, until it had to give way to Woman in White).
CarolynW
Leading Actor Joined: 9/8/04
#2re: Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 11:07am
I don't know about the other article, but the BBC reports he is only selling four theatres. I have provided a link to the article:
Theatre impresario and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is currently in talks to sell four of his 11 London theatres.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4182425.stm
Yours,
Carolyn
#3re: Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 11:45am
http://money.cnn.com/2005/01/18/news/newsmakers/lloyd_webber.reut/index.htm
WOW, nearly a BILLION dollars!
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
--Aristotle
#4re: Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 12:04pmWonder who the bidder is? "A major U.S. Corporation"?? Maybe a Film Studio? Universal?
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
--Aristotle
#5re: Andrew Llyod Webber Buy-out Offer
Posted: 1/18/05 at 12:27pmhttp://www.playbill.com/news/article/90652.html
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
--Aristotle
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
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