All booked up
Abbe Bates goes in search of those booking agencies that aim to make buying tickets for anything from West End shows to royal attractions that much easier for GTOs.
Using a ticket booking agency to secure tickets for some of the top shows in London or some of the most popular attractions and events in the UK and abroad often means that GTOs can build a relationship with and receive a personal service from a single contact who can take care of all your needs. Over the next few pages, you’ll find an overview of some of these agencies that cater particularly well for groups and discover just what sort of products they have to offer.
It is useful to know that STAR (Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers), formed in 1997, is the UK’s self-regulatory body for the entertainment ticket industry. Its members all agree to sell tickets in line with a strict Code of Practice, which requires high standards of customer service and the provision of information at the time of sales. Purchasing from a STAR member, which most of the agents mentioned in this feature are, ensures that customers have an independent means of redress in the event of any unresolved problems. There are three categories of membership; Full – for those selling tickets as agents, Associate – for companies and venues who sell their own tickets direct to the public and Travel Affiliate – for those who sell tickets together with other package elements such as travel, accommodation or hospitality. STAR is also involved in applying the Office of Fair Trading’s (OFT) Consumer Code Approval Scheme that aims to promote and safeguard consumers’ interests and is currently in discussion with the OFT to develop model terms and conditions for the sale of entertainment tickets to establish a new standard for ticket sellers across the industry. These will then be adopted into its Code of Practice.
West End theatre
Consistently popular with groups looking for West End show tickets is central London based ticket agency Group Line. Founded in 1991, the company sells 400,000 West End theatre tickets every year. The company produces a newsletter called ‘theatreview’ five times a year, which details current group theatre ticket offers. Featured deals at present include a new booking period until October 2007 for Billy Elliot The Musical at the Victoria Palace Theatre, on sale exclusively to groups, and discounted rates for the new production of The Sound of Music at the London Palladium. As well as this, a main groups brochure is published in January, May and September. A useful facility that Group Line also offers is its ‘book now, pay later’ option, which allows GTOs to hold tickets without commitment, to allow time for final numbers to be confirmed prior to payment. The company is also able to book backstage tours for your group of the National Theatre on the South Bank and the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and sells group tickets for the English National Ballet Christmas season at the London Coliseum and the main Royal Philharmonic Orchestra concerts at the Royal Albert Hall.
London-based ticketing company See, meanwhile, was formed in 2004 by combining Really Useful Theatres Ticketing, Ticketselect and Way Ahead and has a dedicated groups booking department – See Groups. The company produces a Groups Guide and a Groups Update leaflet (launched this spring) three times a year that details the sort of offers organisers can expect to benefit from. Current deals include special group rates for the Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward Theatre and Dirty Dancing The Classic Story on Stage at the Aldwych Theatre. As well as these shows, the company also offers group discounts on tickets for London plays including the Old Vic Season and Tom Stoppard’s Rock ‘n’ Roll at the Duke of York’s Theatre. In most cases, See Groups will not charge a booking fee when tickets are purchased for a group and can hold tickets for up to a month, to give plenty of time to confirm final numbers and arrange payment. Reservations can also be cancelled at any time prior to the date of payment with no financial penalties. GTOs can also sign up for a regular groups e-newsletter.
Celebrating 25 years next year, ticketing agency Applause, part of the Seatem Group, operates from Seatem House in London and offers numerous deals for group organisers on West End theatre tickets such as special rates for Monty Python’s Spamalot at the Palace Theatre and Daddy Cool at the Shaftesbury Theatre. The company also offers popular Matinee Idols packages, which include a two course meal and matinee tickets to see a West End show. Group prices on tickets are also available for a range of West End plays including Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Other options include discounted backstage tours of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and discounted tickets for performances by the English National Opera at the London Coliseum. The company publishes an Essential Guide to Group & Coach Bookings bi-monthly and also produces a regular Theatre Group Listings Guide.
Also a London-based ticket booking agency is Encore Tickets, started in 2000. Encore Tickets recently acquired Advance Box Office in July and, as the two have now merged, the groups department is being marketed as Encore Advance. A Groups Guide is produced four times a year, that details the sort of deals on offer. Recent options include discounted rates for groups of 10 or more to see Cabaret at the Lyric Theatre and discounts on plays such as the Taming of The Shrew at the Old Vic. The company also offers dinner and show deals. A newsletter, In Advance is also published five times a year. In line with the creation of Encore Advance, the company has also eliminated credit card surcharges on bookings. From November, a new ‘Loyal Circle’ programme was introduced to try and reward group organisers booking with the company. For every ten pounds you spend, loyalty points are given that can be redeemed against rewards such as theatre and dinner packages, hotel stays and flights to New York
Ticketmaster, meanwhile, celebrates its 30th anniversary this year and provides ticketing services for a wide range of events including arenas, stadiums, performing arts venues, museums and theatres. In the UK, it operates from Leicester Square in London. Its West End offers for group organisers include reduced tickets for groups for The Lord of the Rings at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane – which opens in May – Wicked The Untold Story of The Witches of Oz at the Apollo Victoria, We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre and Dirty Dancing at the Aldwych Theatre. A Ticketmaster Groups Guide is produced six times a year that includes details of current deals.
Another ticket agency, Albemarle of London, was established in 1965 and sells tickets to groups for most West End shows. Groups are generally offered a reduced rate depending on the day and accommodation can also be provided for groups in three, four or five star London hotels with ticket and hotel packages available. An email listing of current group rates on shows can be sent out on request.
London-based Lashmars is also a ticketing agency that offers group discounts on West End theatre tickets and was founded in 1926.
Also selling West End theatre tickets, the Ambassador Theatre Group is currently described as the largest theatre group in the West End and the second largest in the UK regions, with over 20 venues including the Donmar Warehouse Theatre and the Savoy Theatre. Founded in 1992, the Group is also one of the country’s foremost theatre producers, with productions such as Porgy and Bess at the Savoy and Guys and Dolls at the Piccadilly. ATG Group Sales is based at The Savoy Theatre in London, covering all its West End theatres, and offers discounted tickets, no booking fees and a reserve tickets now, pay later scheme. The group has also branched out this year to sell tickets for other West End venues and also offers bespoke meal deals that include show tickets and a choice of menus at London restaurants such as Planet Hollywood.
Also a theatre group that sells tickets to groups is Delfont Mackintosh Theatres, created in 1991, which now has seven West End venues including the Prince Edward Theatre and the Prince of Wales Theatre. The company sells group tickets for all shows in its theatres, as well as, more recently other West End musicals as well. Current shows on sale to groups include Avenue Q at the Noel Coward Theatre, Equus, which opens at the Gielgud Theatre in February, and Little Shop of Horrors at the Menier Chocolate Factory. The company also sells tickets for the Royal Shakespeare Company, which begins a season at the Novello Theatre in December, and the National Theatre, as well as plays such as The History Boys, beginning a West End run at Wyndham’s Theatre this month. Delfont Mackintosh Theatres also offers a selection of theatre tours at the Queen’s, Prince Edward and Prince of Wales Theatres. Groups of 10 or more receive a discount. The specialist Group Sales Department, currently based at the Prince of Wales Theatre, is able to reserve tickets without charge for a month whilst final details are confirmed and do not charge a booking fee for their own venues. Groups are also able to arrange for programmes and ice creams to be pre-ordered and to add on restaurant packages to theatre bookings. A new Groups Guide has been produced, planned to be quarterly, that details deals on offer.
Also not strictly a ticket booking agency but selling tickets to groups, Disney Theatrical Groups (UK) was created in 2002 to better serve the needs of group bookers for Disney’s West End productions, currently The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre and Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward Theatre (a co-production with Cameron Mackintosh). Group rates are offered on most performances for both productions, applying to groups of 15 or more for The Lion King and 12 or more for Mary Poppins.
Capital attractions
Many ticket agencies do not limit themselves to selling West End theatre tickets and it is often possible to book group tickets for various attractions in London and further afield.
For instance, Group Line sells tickets for attractions such as the BA London Eye, Buckingham Palace, Chessington World of Adventures, Alton Towers and Thorpe Park in Surrey. The company is considering producing a specific attractions brochure early next year.
Also offering similar ticketing options is Encore Tickets with deals such as BA London Eye packages that include a flight on the observation wheel and various river cruises, several London attractions such as London Zoo as well as discounted tickets for Kensington Palace and a Jack the Ripper walking tour around east London followed by a Sausage & Mash Supper.
Applause also offers a wide range of attraction and exhibition tickets and packages including a new combined St Paul’s Cathedral & Tower Bridge Exhibition option, the Summer Opening of the Houses of Parliament, exclusive to Applause, and Dino Jaws at the Natural History Museum.
See, meanwhile, offers tickets to groups for all the attractions in the Historic Royal Palaces portfolio, such as Hampton Court Palace in Surrey, and for the summer opening of Buckingham Palace.
Albemarle of London sells group tickets for attractions in London including Madame Tussauds, The Queen’s Gallery, the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum and Bateaux London lunch and dinner cruises, with groups of a minimum of between six and 15 people normally offered reduced rates.
Across the UK and beyond
There are also several ticket agencies that sell tickets for events to groups across the whole of the country.
In the north, Manchester-based Ticketline began life over 35 years ago as Piccadilly Box Office, a small local ticket shop in Manchester and now sells tickets to a wide range of events across the UK and beyond such as concerts, festivals, outdoor events, sport and regional theatre. These include shows by artists such as Lionel Richie, open air classical concerts around the country and regional theatre, mainly at The Lowry in Manchester, Newcastle City Hall and Doncaster Dome. The company has a dedicated group booking executive to deal with group bookings and a weekly newsletter is sent out to subscribers every week.
In the Midlands, the box office of the Birmingham-based NEC Group offers a wide selection of shows to group organisers at The NEC (National Exhibition Centre), The NEC Arena and The NIA (National Indoor Arena). These include favourites such as the Festive Gift Fair, Crufts, Horse of the Year Show and Disney on Ice. New shows for 2007 include Torville and Dean’s Dancing on Ice Live at The NIA and British Open Show Jumping and The Davis Cup at The NEC. The company has a Groups Booking Team to deal with enquiries and publishes a magazine called grouptalk bi-monthly, giving details of group discounts offered.
See also sells tickets to a range of events across the UK with past examples including Grand Designs Live at The NEC in Birmingham and Holiday on Ice’s Peter Pan on Ice at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. Various discounts are offered.
The Ambassador Theatre Group has a number of theatres in other parts of the UK such as King’s Theatre in Glasgow and the Regent Theatre in Stoke on Trent. Nearly all have their own group booking departments that offer similar deals to the office at the Savoy Theatre.
Applause also sells tickets for a number of events across the country, most notably and exclusively for the RHS flower shows such as the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show and the RHS Flower Show at Tatton Park in Cheshire. Discounts are offered to 10 or more people on most of these shows. Rock and pop concerts are also featured as well as Premiership Football tickets and packages. The company also recently branched out to offer tickets to a number of events in the Czech Republic’s capital of Prague. These include the Prague State Opera and the National Theatre. Sightseeing options are also offered such as discounted rates for 15 or more on coach tours including Grand City Tours of Prague. A selection of River Cruises & Themed Dinner Shows are also available. It is also possible to arrange accommodation in the city with the company. Other destinations that will be launched to groups next year include New York and Amsterdam.
For those groups visiting Paris, although a wholesaler, Basingstoke-based Allo France, created in 2002, can arrange tickets for groups to a range of shows and attractions in the French capital including The Moulin Rouge and the Louvre. Deals are offered on a bespoke basis.