About the London Coliseum
The London Coliseum opened on Christmas Eve 1904, built for the impresario Oswald Stoll and designed by Frank Matcham, with a 100ft Italian Renaissance frontage and a 145ft tower carrying the iron revolving globe that still turns above St Martin's Lane.
It's the largest theatre in the West End. The building belongs to English National Opera, which has been here since 1968, when it was still called Sadler's Wells Opera. ENO is taking its headquarters to Greater Manchester by 2029 but keeps the Coliseum and keeps performing here, so nothing changes about what you can book: opera, ballet, musicals and concerts, as now.
Inside, much of Matcham's original detail survives, including a bust of Stoll's mother Adelaide, which comes with a tradition about a pound coin and three spins bringing a lifetime of good theatre. Adelaide's Champagne Bar, on the Stalls level, shares her name.
The Coliseum's year
Opera through the autumn, winter and spring. English National Opera's season runs from October, and it's the largest part of the year here.
Ballet at Christmas. English National Ballet takes the building over the festive weeks, and has done for years. The current Nutcracker, by Aaron S. Watkin and Arielle Smith, was new in 2024. In January 2027 they follow it with Rudolf Nureyev's Romeo & Juliet, which had its premiere on this stage fifty years before.
A big musical when the opera season breaks. The Coliseum takes a large-scale musical for a limited run, and it's usually a title that wouldn't otherwise fit into a West End theatre.
Notable past productions
- Kinky Boots (2026), the most recent musical season here, with Johannes Radebe as Lola
- Spirited Away (2024), the Studio Ghibli film on stage, which returns to the Coliseum in 2028
- My Fair Lady (2022), Lincoln Center Theater's revival directed by Bartlett Sher, which ran from May to August and was the first major West End revival of the show in 21 years
- Chess (2018), with Michael Ball and Alexandra Burke
- The Sleeping Beauty (2018), English National Ballet's Kenneth MacMillan staging, which closed here that June
- Kiss Me, Kate (2018), Opera North's production
- Carousel (2017), semi-staged, with Alfie Boe and Katherine Jenkins
- Hairspray and Bat Out of Hell have both taken summer seasons here
- The Who (1969), who played Tommy here on 14 December 1969; the film of the night is Live at the London Coliseum
English National Opera's repertoire in any given season is far longer than the list above.
Other venues of similar size
- London Palladium, 2,292 seats, on Argyll Street, the closest match in size
- Apollo Victoria Theatre, 2,328 seats, just 31 fewer than the Coliseum
- Dominion Theatre, 2,067 seats over two levels, a big musical theatre on Tottenham Court Road
About FAQs
When was the London Coliseum built?
It opened on Christmas Eve 1904, built for Oswald Stoll and designed by the theatre architect Frank Matcham.
Did The Who play at the London Coliseum?
Yes, on 14 December 1969, performing their rock opera Tommy on the tour that took it round opera houses. The concert was filmed and later released as Live at the London Coliseum.
Who owns the London Coliseum?
English National Opera. The theatre is run by London Coliseum Ltd, which ENO owns outright, and the profits go back into the opera company.