BRITAIN: Millionaire musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber may soon be singing all the way to the bank after getting an offer for his Really Useful Group, worth up to £500 million (€717 million).
The man who transformed musical theatre with hits like Cats and Starlight Express has always been happier sitting at a piano than in a board room, and he may get his wish in what could be one of the biggest buyouts in British theatre history.
Lloyd Webber's wholly-owned Really Useful Group, founded in 1977, is a global entertainment group which stages musicals worldwide, recently released the feature film The Phantom of the Opera and has rights to the composer's songs and shows.
"Andrew Lloyd Webber has received an inquiry in relation to the acquisition of some parts of his businesses," a spokeswoman for the composer said yesterday.
"The process is in its formative stages and no decisions have yet been made." Sources said the theatre impresario had also received a separate bid for four of the 12 West End playhouses currently owned by the Really Useful Theatre Company - a joint venture with private equity fund Bridgepoint Capital.
"We are working closely and in co-operation with Lord Lloyd Webber to review options," a spokesman for Bridgepoint said.
Lloyd Webber (56) staged his first musical in London in 1968 and went on to become one of the genre's biggest names.
British media reports have hinted the bidder for the Really Useful Group could be a major US corporation, while the Ambassador Theatre Group and Broadway producer Max Weitzenhoffer are said to be among those interested in the four theatres. - (Reuters)