Three seat holders at London’s Royal Albert Hall have lost their bid for damages after accusing the venue’s operator of depriving them of their rights to seats.
The seat holders are Arthur George, William Stockler, and Alexander Stockler, who came together to claim that they had “unlawfully” been excluded from more performances than the rules allow. The rules in question are laid out by the venue, and the three of them sought out £500,000 in damages.
Seat and box holders have been a part of the venue since they helped fund the construction of the building. It was opened by Queen Victoria in 1871 and, thanks to their investment, they were granted access to seats in the hall for the term of its 999-year lease.
As reported by BBC, around 1,268 of the 5,272 seats at RAH are privately owned by 316 people, and those who own them are entitled to attend two-thirds of the performances at the venue in any 12-month period. Seats can also be passed down into future generations, and members are allowed to do as they please with the tickets – including earning an income by selling them.
In their claim, the lawyers of Arthur George and William and Alexander Stockler asked the judge to rule that they were unlawfully excluded from performances, and grant an injunction on the venue.
The bid was dismissed, and it was ruled by Judge Sir Anthony Mann that the query should go to trial.
“It would seem to me to be potentially unhelpful to have the declaration sought,” the Judge said. “Whether any declaration at all is justified at a trial, when all the relevant issues and defences have been canvassed and ruled on, will be a matter for the trial judge.”
“The history of the matter and its effect needs to be gone into with a degree of thoroughness which only a trial can provide, and a trial is necessary in order to determine the validity of this defence,” Sir Anthony continued. “That being the case, I do not need to consider the question of the measure of damages and whether an interim award is justified.”
George owns 12 seats in two separate boxes, and the Stocklers own a combined four seats in one box. As shared in written submissions for the corporation, the three of them have been members since before 2008. As shown on Harrods Estates – which manages the sale of seats and stalls at the historic venue – four stall seats that were sold had a guide price of £650,000.
In a statement to NME, a Royal Albert Hall spokesperson said: “In 2024, three out of 300 Members of the charity commenced proceedings against the Hall in the High Court claiming that the Hall was infringing their rights, even though current practice is supported by a significant majority of Members every year at the AGM.
“Their application for Summary Judgment was unsuccessful in all respects. It is now for the claimants to decide whether to pursue their claim any further.”
The spokesperson clarified that proceedings from the three seat holders began in December last year, when they claimed that the Hall was infringing their rights. Then, in March 2025, the three “applied for Summary Judgment for a declaration that the Hall was acting unlawfully, for an injunction to prevent the Hall continuing its current practice and for an interim payment of damages.”
In their comment, the venue also outlined that the current practice is supported by a “significant majority of Members every year at the AGM”, and that when the latest judgement was handed down yesterday (July 29), the claimants were ordered to pay costs after being unsuccessful on all counts.
News of the legal complaint arrived just days after it was confirmed that The Royal Albert Hall had become the first arena to commit to the £1 LIVE ticket levy to help support grassroots venues.
Set to be implemented from October 1 2025, a £1 ticket contribution will be added to all commercial rock and pop concerts at the Hall. This will raise an estimated £300,000 per annum for the LIVE Trust.
A recent Music Fans’ Voice survey showed that 93 per cent of fans agreed that £1 from every arena and stadium ticket should be donated to support the grassroots, and last spring, a government committee of UK MPs joined the call for a levy on arena and stadium gigs – as well as a cut in VAT.
The decision comes as the UK music scene continues to face the “complete collapse” of touring. Huge areas are now going without live music, one venue is closing every two weeks, and the uphill struggle for artists to afford to exist continues.
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