Coronavirus

Museums across the UK are tightening their Covid measures in light of the Omicron variant.

The Museum Associations reports many museums are making "contingency plans" for Christmas rotas, fearing a return to the staff shortages caused by self-isolation rules last year.

In accordance with Government guidance for retail, face masks are now mandatory in The National Gallery and The British Museum's shops. Both institutions recommend face coverings throughout their premises unless exempt.

The V&A, Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum and Yorkshire Air Museum are amongst those now asking visitors to wear masks in all their public spaces.

Face coverings remain mandatory in all museums across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Panto ticket sales through October are half of what they were this time in 2019, analysis from The Audience Agency (TAA) suggests.

Data from 343 venues for the week commencing October 11 found a 52% drop in tickets sold, a 53% drop in income and 27% drop in performances compared to two years ago.

The decrease reflects audiences' low commitment to attendance: 44% of respondents TAA’s Cultural Participation Monitor said they definitely won't go to a panto this year, compared to 8% who plan to.

Those aged over 65 are most likely to stay away, with two thirds expected not to attend at all this winter.

TAA says a pre-Covid trend of decreasing panto sales is accelerating, presenting a further threat to venues, and warns "venues may need to rethink the festival formula in response to these changes".

A quarter of Northern Ireland's arts workforce has been lost to Covid-19.

The number of people employed by arts organisations in the country fell 25% in the 2020/21 financial year, according to Arts Council Northern Ireland’s (ACNI) annual funding survey.

Covid restrictions meant just 59 in-person arts activities took place that year compared to 67,000 in 2019/20. Total income fell by £4.5m (9%) and earned income by £16m (69%).

Losses were offset by a 22% increase in income from public sources. ACNI delivered £12.9m in grants to 97 arts organisations last financial year, the same number as the year prior.

ACNI Director of Strategic Development and Partnerships Karly Greene said that though online events grew, they were no replacement for the income generated by live events.

“While we don’t yet know the long term impact these changes will have on the sector, this survey highlights a need for ongoing financial support and will be an important tool in helping us to strategically plan for the future."
 

In a milestone for the industry, London's Prince of Wales Theatre and Playhouse Theatre became the final West End theatres to reopen on Monday (15 November).

All 37 West End theatres have now recommenced live shows, 609 days after Covid restrictions were first enforced.

The Theatre Support Fund, established to support the industry through the pandemic, called it “a doubly special night”.

Prince of Wales Theatre is hosting Book of Mormon and Playhouse Theatre has reconfigured as the Kit Kat Club for musical Cabaret.

Cabaret's audience members, including those fully vaccinated, are being asked to present a negative lateral flow or PCR test from the last 48 hours to enter.

Ten creatives will receive £1,000 and development opportunities via Manchester International Festival's MIF Sounds initiative.

MIF Sounds launched at the height of the pandemic, helping musicians to continue working and work outside their comfort zone during an uncertain time.

This year's applicants can apply for anything from recording music, presenting a gig, releasing a record or starting a label imprint.

MIF Head of Music Jane Besse said the company is committed to helping rebuild the sector post-Covid.

One in three music sector jobs were lost in the sector as employment fell from a high of 197,000 in 2019 to 128,000 people in 2020, according to UK Music.

"We encourage everyone involved in the local music scene to apply - artists, technicians, promoters, venues, labels, managers and beyond," Besse said.

People attending the theatre or cinemas in the Republic of Ireland must show proof of vaccination from Thursday (November 18).

Pubs, nightclubs and restaurants must close by midnight in a bid to curb rising Covid-19 case numbers.

Echoing his contemporaries in Scotland, Wales and more recently, Northern Ireland, Taioseach Michael Martin said vaccine passports are a "proportionate and effective" approach.

Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swann has proposed introducing the passports in cultural venues and other spaces with more than 500 attendees by mid-December.

England is still holding out, with no word on whether ministers will activate the country's Plan B for winter.

Blackpool will establish a new cultural partnership to help the local arts sector recover from Covid-19.

Initiatives including a town centre creative hub and new live-work studios for artists will be pursued with the support of Blackpool Council.

The council said it hoped the partnership would help with "developing a vision and maximising investment in the sector".

Blackpool was recently named one of Arts Council England's priority places for investment.

Recent surveys have uncovered much creative talent and a full ecology of arts activity in the area, from amateur and community arts to professional creative work, but lower levels of investment than other parts of England.