In its box office data report, the SOLT states that "the big driver" behind business in 2010 was major name actors in plays. They included Knightley and Damian Lewis in The Misanthrope, as well as Sex and the City actress Kim Cattrall and Matthew Macfadyen in Private Lives. Box office receipts reached a record high of £512.3m. The figures cover theatres that are members of the SOLT, which include those in the commercial West End as well as major grant-aided institutions.
In Suspension - Take That singers Mark Owen and Howard Donald were both trapped on a stage robot during their concert at the City of Manchester stadium at the weekend.The pair were meant to be lowered to the stage on the palms of the group's giant robot man, Om, but the mechanics failed. It meant they were stuck singing Love Love three metres above the rest of the band on Saturday night.
A statement from the group read: "The mechanical man did stop in motion at the end of Love Love but the matter was resolved and by the end of the show he was standing tall again. Howard Donald was stuck singing Never Forget on a mechanical robot "There is no guarantee that with a mechanical structure the size of Om, there will be no recurrence at some point but all seems fine now." The stage production for the tour cost around £15m to put together with the robot used in the shows standing 30m high when fully erect.
In The Courts The UK firm that insured Michael Jackson's comeback gigs at London's O2 arena has asked a judge in Los Angeles to nullify the $17.5m (£10.7m) policy. Insurer Lloyd's of London is suing promoter AEG Live saying it failed to supply details including apparent "prescription drug use and/or addiction".
Not in the USA - Adele has been forced to cancel the rest of her North American tour after coming down with laryngitis. The singer said she was "really frustrated" but "there is absolutely nothing I can do but take the doctor's advice and rest some more". The announcement came just days after she postponed five dates on the tour, and she has now cancelled the remaining nine shows. A statement said the possibility of rescheduling the tour dates was "being investigated".
(Jim Evans)
