Fortune Theatre

I had a rather unpromising start with the Fortune Theatre, as I initially wanted to see Operation Mincemeat around Christmas time but was told the wheelchair lift was broken and there was little prospect of fixing it until March. However, things soon improved, as the theatre took my email address to let me know when the lift was fixed and then did actually follow through on their promise. With the lift fixed, the next step was to get some accessible tickets. You can do this by joining the ATG ticketing service's accessibility scheme, but it turns out that there's not a great deal to be gained by doing this, as Operation Mincemeat doesn't offer free essential companion tickets for wheelchair-users. I think this is connected to the policy that every seat in the venue is priced the same on any particular date, so the way to get cheaper tickets is simply to go on a day when they're showing on the calendar as cheaper (usually on a Monday). Then, if you need step-free access to your seat, do what I did and book in Row F in the dress circle. You can also book a wheelchair and companion place in that row, which as I say isn't discounted but does mean the staff will remove a seat for you if you need to stay in your wheelchair (I can transfer and shuffle along a row so didn't need this myself). To use the wheelchair lift up to Dress Circle Row F, I went into the theatre entrance (no steps) and got the attention of a staff member, who then took me back outside and round to a side door where the lift is. The staff were pleasant and helpful and the show was amazing - really the hot ticket in the West End at the moment after winning Olivier awards - so I'm really glad I persevered with the booking after the initial disappointment of the lift being out of order.

Olivier Award winning performance of Operation Mincemeat offering fully accessible access with super friendly and accommodating staff.

The booking for this show was okay, as it allowed: The equivalent of a free ticket for essential companions. A range of contact methods. Detailed access information on their easy to navigate website. But could do with some improvements such as having flexible price bands so people who require a more expensive seat simply because it meets their access needs do not have to pay so much more than they may otherwise choose (or be able) to. Especially after the most recent survey: https://www.scope.org.uk/campaigns/extra-costs/disability-price-tag-2023/ The physical accommodations at this venue were good for how old it is. This included: In seat service for those who couldn't visit the bar or merchandise stalls independently. Wheelchair friendly terrain in the few areas we could go. No overhang in the way for most of the seats. As usual, people with dynamic disabilities or who are chronically ill don't seem to be considered in the refund policy however I'm sure if you phoned to explain you couldn't make it due to a medical reason they'd be understanding enough to at least let you reschedule. I find the seats here quite uncomfortable, however I understand that this is due to limitations of a grade 2 heritage asset and needing to fit as many in as possible to make it financially viable to run. The re admittance policy was very relaxed and allowed you to come and go should you need to, which is really the minimum I would expect given they have no chill out space and only ONE sensory friendly performance scheduled. The same goes for other provisions as there are NO audio described or BSL interpreted showings available currently. Captioning is marginally better.