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£10m donation to Opera House
Funding set out in arts patron’s will in 2001
A MULTI-MILLIONAIRE philanthropist has donated £10 million to the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.
Lord Paul Hamlyn, publisher, arts patron and major donor to New Labour, who died in 2001, left the money in his will.
The venue’s Floral Hall, restored in 1999 with a £21-million facelift, will be renamed the Paul Hamlyn Hall in his honour.
The money will be used to build education links at the opera house and help teaching singing in local schools.
There will also be free events in the Paul Hamlyn Hall as part of a plan to attract a wider audience to the venue during the day.
And an education fund will be established within the Royal Opera House Endowment Fund – generating an annual income to support the company.
Tony Hall chief executive of the Royal Opera House said he was shocked by the show of generosity.
He said: “This is the most extraordinarily forward-thinking gift and one that ensures that generations to come will benefit from Paul’s enjoyment of the Royal Opera House.
“The endowment also gives us the opportunity to plan ahead with certainty that funds are in place to realise some of the ambitions we have for our education and access activities.
“We are very grateful to the trustees of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation for making this possible and ensuring that Paul’s legacy is kept alive.”
The son of a Jewish paediatrician Lord Hamlyn came to Britain aged six as a refugee from Nazi Germany.
His philanthropic relationship with the Royal Opera House began in 1986 when his wife Helen created the Paul Hamlyn performances, giving cut-price tickets for disadvantaged opera lovers.
Lord Hamyln’s daughter Jane Hamlyn, who is chair of the foundation, said: “Paul Hamlyn loved coming to the Royal Opera House. He particularly loved it when the auditorium was filled to the brim with people seeing the best ballet and opera for the first time.
“We are delighted that the gift of £10m to endow the Paul Hamlyn Education Fund will be used by the Royal Opera House to support its education and community activities. The Paul Hamlyn Hall is a source of great pride and pleasure for the family and the Foundation.”
His is the second major donation made to restore the hall after another philanthropist, Alberto Vilar, in 1999 pledged £10-million.
The Opera House named the hall after Mr Vilar in gratitude but in 2005 he failed to honour his pledge.
Vilar was arrested on charges of securities fraud following claims from the Cuban government claims that he had stolen $5million from one of his clients. It is alleged he used the money to try to honour his pledge to the Opera House.
Vilar’s total donation to the ROH since 1999 is approximately £4.4-million and he remains listed on the Donor and Benefactors Board. |
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