Theatre boss: 'I'll let it rot after I shut it'

Lincoln Theatre Royal director Chris Moreno says he is willing to let it rot following an explosive row with City Hall.

Mr Moreno said he was so angry with council bosses for withdrawing funding that he had lost all interest in the building's future.

He also blasted Lincoln City Council chiefs after they claimed he had failed to submit accounts during the 10 year, £1.5m subsidy programme.

He said this was totally false.

And in a frank interview with the Echo, Mr Moreno said he was ready to "lock the door and throw away the key".

"It's going to stand empty and rot," he said. "It will be boarded up right away.

"Come the end of March, I don't care what happens to the place."

There are 25 years remaining on the £75,000 lease on the Lincoln theatre Mr Moreno signed with the council in 1993.

The man who decided to end funding, Coun Hilton Spratt, has admitted there is no plan in place to get the lease back if the building is boarded up.

But if no business wants to take on the property, Mr Moreno said the council would have to pay a sizeable sum if it was not to stand empty for years.

"At the moment I would not be charitable," he said.

For more of Mr Moreno's interview with the Echo, plus a response from Coun Hilton Spratt, see Friday's Echo