Steve Cardownie, Edinburgh City Council's festivals and events champion, added, "Edinburgh's Hogmanay has long been the envy of cities across the globe and the celebrations to bring in the start 2015 are set to be no exception. Headliner Lily Allen is sure to be a big hit with revellers, and coupled with an absolutely spectacular fireworks display, we are aiming to yet again bring together and entertain thousands of people as the capital brings in the bells."
The Show Goes On - Guitarist Rick Parfitt has missed his first Status Quo gig since joining the rock band in 1967. Parfitt, 65, said he was "disappointed" to be missing the show at Clumber Park in Worksop, Nottinghamshire after being told to rest by doctors. Parfitt recently had an operation to correct a problem with the quadruple heart bypass he had in 1997. Freddie Edwards, son of bass player John "Rhino" Edwards, filled in for him at Friday's concert.
Parfitt fell ill during the band's European tour and was flown home from Croatia to be treated at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London. Six concerts in Croatia, Monaco, Switzerland and Germany were cancelled as a result. Parfitt is expected to recuperate in time for Status Quo's next show at Holkham Hall in Norfolk on 23 August.
Brighton Blues - Brighton councillors have approved plans to convert the city's grade-II* listed hippodrome into a £20m cinema house, despite calls from campaigners to turn the building back into a live performance venue. At a recent meeting, Brighton and Hove City Council's planning committee agreed to the proposals, which would see the disused 1,400-seat Brighton Hippodrome become an eight-screen cinema and restaurant complex.
The local authority's planning committee chair Phelim Mac Cafferty said that "in an ideal world" an application to restore the building as a theatre would have been put forward. He said: "The sad reality of the situation is that we didn't have that. The committee accepted that a theatre is unlikely to be viable. The committee felt that on balance it was better to have the building preserved as a cinema than deteriorating as an empty shell. If a viable theatre proposal comes forward in the future the conversion is designed to be reversible."
Derby Delight - Derby Hippodrome campaigners have moved one step closer to restoring the venue for live entertainment after submitting plans to the council to rejuvenate the front of house areas as an interim measure. The £3m proposals would see the venue's foyer become a café and events space and also the auditorium and stage house reroofed before funds could be raised to fully restore the building as a 1,200-seat venue. There would also be office space created on the upper floors and potential for performances and use by community groups in the auditorium in the interim, said the campaigners. The plans have gained the support of the national advisory body the Theatres Trust, which said the proposals would "activate the street and reengage the local community".
Running Costs - When broken down by sector, the average combined cost of a programme, glass of white wine and an ice cream in the commercial West End is £12.20, compared with £11.37 in the not-for-profit sector, according to a survey conducted by The Stage. In the commercial sector, the theatre where audience members can expect to pay the most for a wine, progra
