Millions to be spent to make Curve theatre safe after falling 'blade' incident

Leicester City Council is set to spend millions of pounds to make the Curve theatre safe. Repairs to the city centre venue, in Rutland Street, will be needed after a chunk of metal came loose from the front of the building earlier this year.

Pedestrians had a lucky escape in May after the 150kg “blade” plummeted to the pavement, reportedly narrowly missing a man as he walked by. A large area of Orton Square was cordoned off, and scaffolding erected around the Curve.

At the time, there was no adverse weather conditions and the cause of the incident was initially unknown. Leicester City Council, which owns the building and rents it out, has since commissioned investigations, and these have shown that the original fixing had “failed in certain areas”, a report reveals.

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There are around 700 of the same type of blade as the one which fell on the building, the report added. Work is now required to ensure the fixings on each of these are secure.

Each panel will be removed and reattached with additional fixings, the report states. This is expected to costs £2.2 million, with city mayor Sir Peter Soulsby set to sign off on the spending in the coming weeks.

It is hoped work will start before the end of the year, the report states. It is anticipated to be complete next autumn.