... A storm in a car park THEATRE bosses in York are keeping close watch on a car park ing row between two local councils which could affect attendances at matinee shows. The city's Theatre Royal is caught in the middle of the dispute betwen York City Council and Ryedale District Council following the former's decision to charge Ryedale residents extra for parking in York. Ryedale says the ...

... Same time next year? AFTER the huge success of the Terry-Thomas Benefit evening at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on April, 9 the organisers Richard Hope- Hawkins and Jack Douglas want to make it an annual event to help other Parkinson's Disease suf ferers. Douglas has already hired the London Palladium for next year's show which, it is hoped, will feature a half British and half American line ...

... Short lease of life for Dominion THE Apollo Leisure theatre chain has been awarded a short term lease on the threatened Dominion site in Tottenham Court Road. Major tenants Rank agreed to a new deal which leaves everyday running of the venue in Apollo's hands in the same week that Rank's own lease came up for renewal. The proprietor of the theatre Saveflex Ltd wants to demolish the prime West ...

... Zap fills the gap A MAJOR redevelopment prog ramme costing almost £400,000 has meant a new venue for live enter tainment in Brighton. Just five months ago The Zap was an overcrowded seafront club until theatre architect Mark Foley designer of the Almeida, The Place and Riverside Studios in London was called in. Now it has a capacity for over 400 people. The cost of the redevelopment was funded ...

... In for a dizzy spell THE DIZZY GILLESPIE United Nation All-Star Orchestra is to play one date only at the Royal Festival Hall on June 10 towards the end of a European tour. There will be two other June dates in Britain, at Edin burgh on June 2 and Bath the following night. The 15-piece band includes such notable as Flora Purim and her hus band Airto Moreira, James Moody, Slide Hampton, Steve ...

... Organising a UK tour ORGANIST Jimmy McGriff and tenor saxist Hank Crawford are front ing a quartet completed by Wayne Boyd on guitar and Vance James on drums which begins a tour at the Bierkeller, Bristol on May 18. Continuing until May 28, the tour includes dates at Brighton, the 100 Club in Oxford Street, Liverpool, the Wag in Wardour Street, Eastleigh, Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham and ...

... Beam me up, says Palace boss HI-TECH lasers could be back on beam for Blackpool Illuminations if the town's Palace Nightspot has its way. The Central Promenade venue is applying to Blackpool Council for permission to install a laser show as its contribution to this year's Illumina tions package. Long range lasers first joined tradi tional light bulbs for the 50th anniversary Illuminations in ...

... Albion band saddles up THE LATEST incarnation of the Albion Band this year comprising Ashley Hutchings, Phil Beer, Trevor Foster, Simon Care and John Shepherd has begun a tour to promote its new album on Topic, Give Me a Saddle, I'll Trade You a Car. The band is at Portsmouth Polytechnic on April 22, with dates at Manchester, Birmingham, Wath-on- Dearne, Cardigan, Putney Half Moon, Letchworth, ...

... Threat to demolish Dominion By BRIAN ATTWOOD THE OWNERS of the Dominion theatre will this week launch a bid to demolish the 2000 seat venue even though the council has declared it to be a listed building. saveflex, the proprietors of the Dominion want to knock down the popular West End theatre and develop the lucrative Tottenham Court Road site. The company will apply to Camden Council for ...

... Portsmouth looks to get feet beating By ANN NUGENT PORTSMOUTH City Council and IBM are the chief backers of a new dance initiative in Port smouth, called Feetbeat and intended as A European Celebration of Youth Dance. For a week in July more than 100 young dancers from the UK, together with visiting students from France and Germany, will converge on Portsmouth for an intensive programme of ...

... Comeback and sign the contract MYSTERY surrounds the can cellation of Dorothy Squires' come back concert at Swansea, scheduled for April 23. Management at the Grand Theatre admit they are mys tified because she did not sign and return the contract to them within the time limit. Letters from the Grand to Squires and her agent have not received replies, said marketing manager Karisa K re- mar. ...

... Best Sellers BREWERS MitcheUs and Buttlers arc sponsoring an appreciation of Peter Sellers in words, music and dance at the Crescent Theatre, Birmingham on April 16 and 23. Fronting the show will be his screen double John Taylor, with the voices supplied by up-and-coming impress ionist Mark Reynolds. There will also be a singing and dancing chorus and a group of comedians, directed by Michael ...