Bridge Theatre

Occupying a spot of prime real estate opposite Tower Bridge, this brand spanking new London theatre is a 900-seater space that's been dreamt up by Nicholas Hytner and Nick Starr's London Theatre Company. During his long reign over the National Theatre, Hytner found a winning formula of updates on classics and blockbusting new writing, and he's tried to apply the same approach to his new gaff, albeit with less immediate success. His rabble-rousing interactive take on 'Julius Caesar' wowed critics, but although this new space has attracted a roster of leading playwrights like Barney Norris, Martin McDonagh and Richard Bean, they haven't always done their best work here. 

Still, the Bridge Theatre does excel in providing a level of comfort and spaciousness that you won't get at the West End's charming-but-cramped historic playhouses. It has a grassy terrace with views of the Thames, a vast foyer perfect for sipping wine in a leisurely fashion, and a cafe-bar that makes much of its freshly baked madeleines. Oh, and if you've ever spent the whole interval waiting to spend a penny, know that Bridge Theatre has the most commodious toilets in all of theatreland.

Its 900-seater auditorium is fully flexible, meaning it can swap from a trad proscenium arch set-up to a promenade arrangement that lets audiences members move around. With some of the UK's most exciting writers under commission, there's still room for Bridget Theatre to brew a hit to rival Hytner's old stamping ground the National Theatre, just a few miles upstream.