West End power cut: Shows cancelled and restaurants closed as Soho and Chinatown hit by outage
Engineers were working to restore power to more than 1,300 homes and businesses in London
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A power cut in the heart of London’s West End has forced the cancellation of theatre production and cinema screenings as thousands of drinkers and diners were plunged into darkness.
The producers of Miss Saigon asked people to “remain calm” as lights at the Prince Edward Theatre went out and later announced the cancellation of Wednesday night’s show.
Soho cinemas also temporarily shut, alongside bars and restaurants in Chinatown as 1,300 properties lost power.
One diner in renowned restaurant The Ivy described the outage as “quite exciting” as customers remained at their tables.
People posting photos on social media described “eerie” scenes as the streets were lift only by cars’ headlamps.
A spokesperson for UK Power Networks said the power was restored for most buildings within half an hour of the outage.
“Our engineers are currently onsite in the Soho area confirming restoration of electricity to 1,359 customers who lost supply at approximately 19.31 this evening,” she said. “The majority of supplies were restored by 20.00.”
Here are some of the photos from the power cut:
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments