D'Oyly Carte may find home on Tyne

COLIN BROWN

Chief Political Correspondent

Gilbert and Sullivan may soon be added to coal, the MetroCentre, five bridges over the Tyne, and Kevin Keegan's United on the list of things that Newcastle is famous for.

D'Oyly Carte, the world- famous operatic company dedicated to the popular work of Gilbert and Sullivan, is considering settling down on Tyneside following the offer by a local businessman for support for a permanent home in the city.

A spokesman for D'Oyly Carte said Tynesiders had a love of Gilbert and Sullivan almost second to none in Britain. "Newcastle is one of our best venues and the public do support us up there. It is one of the top tour dates with Plymouth, Wolverhampton and Norwich.

"In the North-east there is a real culture of amateurs that has generated the interest."

The company formed by Richard D'Oyly Carte is based in Birmingham, but its five-year contract ran out in December 1995 and it is currently negotiating for an extension to stay in Birmingham or transfer to a new home in Newcastle.

The company's natural home was the Savoy Theatre in the Strand, London, built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the proceeds of the Mikado, but D'Oyly Carte folded in 1982, when the public was more interested in rock musicals, such as Godspell and Hair.

The D'Oyly Carte company was revived in 1988 with a bequest of pounds 1m by a member of the D'Oyly Carte family.

There are detailed negotiations about an opera house in Newcastle to be resolved, but the city council there has pledged support and there is the possibility of funding from the National Lottery in the future, if the National Lottery Act is changed to allow privately-owned buildings to receive lottery cash.

Virginia Bottomley, the Secretary of State for National Heritage, disclosed the possibility that D'Oyly Carte could be found a permanent home in Newcastle when she was pressed to help at a meeting of the Commons National Heritage Select Committee.

Toby Jessel, the Tory MP for Twickenham and an accomplished pianist, called on Mrs Bottomley to help preserve Gilbert and Sullivan's music which he said was as much a part of British culture as roast beef.