New Olympia venue to be known as the British Airways Theatre

The Shubert Organization and Trafalgar Entertainment have announced that the new Olympia Theatre’s naming rights have been given to British Airways.

The venue, under a 70-year lease with Trafalgar Entertainment, will be the largest new theatre to open in London since the National Theatre in 1976. It forms part of the £1.3 billion redevelopment of the 140-year-old Olympia exhibition site into a cultural and entertainment destination near the Royal Albert Hall. The 1,575-seat venue is set to open in 2027.

We had an exclusive insight into the new space earlier this year in our dedicated podcast:

The Olympia redevelopment will also include exhibition and conference facilities for up to 20,000 people, a 3,800-capacity live music venue operated by AEG Presents, revealed today as the British Airways ARC, as well as hotels, offices, restaurants, a school, and a community theatre. Partnerships with organisations such as the BRIT School will form part of the site’s broader cultural offer.

The new theatre has been designed by Haworth Tompkins, with contributions from Charcoal Blue, Buro Happold, Robert Bird Group, Avison Young, and AECOM. Make One London is handling the fit-out. The wider Olympia redevelopment has been co-designed by Heatherwick Studio and SPPARC.