Liverpool could be the new home of the English National Opera (ENO) after it was forced to leave London.
Chief executive of the ENO, Stuart Murphy, told the Guardian Liverpool and Manchester are "really strong contenders" in the running to become opera company's new home. The move comes after the ENO had its general public funding cut from £12.8m a year to zero in November by Arts Council England (ACE) as part of plans aimed at diverting culture money outside London.
The 92-year-old opera company will still stage performances at the London Coliseum, but ACE has said its base must be outside the capital if it is to receive £24m in public funding over three years from 2024.
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Mr Murphy said three potential bases would be selected by the end of May and a winner chosen by the end of this year. The final decision will be taken by the ENO and its board but the shortlist will be put to ACE, which is thought to favour a move to the Midlands or north of England in keeping with the government’s broader levelling up agenda.
Mr Murphy told the Guardian Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Bristol had been whittled down from 14 places originally in the frame. He added that there were “pros and cons” with each of the five contenders.
He said Liverpool was a “really, really strong contender”, describing its hosting of the Eurovision song contest as an “amazing demonstration of how much they love culture”. The city is also already home to Britain's oldest surviving professional symphony orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.
An ACE spokesperson said the ENO was developing plans “based on a reimagined artistic and business model with a primary base out of London”.
She said the potential £24m budget available between 2024 and 2026 would allow the opera company to make a “phased transition” to this new model “and will include work split between their new main base and London”.
“The shared ambition is for the ENO to be in a strong position to apply to the Arts Council’s National Portfolio of funded organisations from 2026.”
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