I am trying to purchase tickets to see the Lion King in London in June 2002. I have called (from US) the phone numbers listed at the Disney UK website and the Official London Theatre Guide website. I get a recording the numbers are disconnected. Lyceum Theatre website states theatre is dark. I'm confused. Anyone know whats going on? I really did not want to go through the booking agencies unless forced to do so.

Barbara,<BR><BR>I don't know what is going on at this particular theater. The Official London Theatre web site is good. In any event, I found on my last visit that you can get tickets to most current plays by going to the box office yourself. If you are not set on a particular day and performance you can usually get to see the play you are interested and not pay the 25% commision. Check the TKTS windown first, you will be surprized to see what plays they offer. Good Luck.<BR><BR>Manny<BR>

Lion King is booking thru 30 June 2002. You might try the box office directly: <BR>Lyceum<BR>Catherine St<BR>Tube: Covent Garden<BR>Tel: 44 870 606 3446 <BR>

Thanks Simone for the sugggestion. I called the phone number this morning. Again, I got a recorded message the number had been disconnected. Anyone living in London know why I might be having problems reaching the box office?<BR><BR>

Barbara, Sorry this has been so frustrating for you. Maybe I can give you an alternative suggestion for purchasing "Lion King" tix.<BR><BR>If you go to: www.timeout.com, then to London, then on this page they have a place to go to purchase tix. Or through the timeout site they have a city link, but you can go directly to: www.whatsonstage.com which will show you what's up and I believe you can purchase them through here. Let us know how this works out for you and Good luck!

I use the UK ticketmaster site to purchase theater tickets and click the option to pick them up at the will call booth.<BR><BR>There are advantages and disadvantages that people will argue. I like the fact that I have a ticket and know what seat I am getting. Yes, you pay full price and don't have as much freedom in choosing your seat - but at least you have a seat.<BR><BR>A show like the Lion King sells out way in advance - and I seriously doubt you will be able to get any discounted tickets from the box office or half-price booths. And even if you can it requires a trip to the theater/booth and an unknown amount of time in line. For me, saving time is one of the best ways to "budget" a vacation. If I spend $10 more on a ticket but save an hour in line, I think I've done well.<BR><BR>Ticketmaster has a very small and reasonable surcharge.<BR><BR>Anyway, hope this helps. <BR><BR>I saw the Lion King in late October with my nephew. It is one of the most wonderful shows I have seen (and I had never seen the movie). It is magical.<BR><BR>John P. Martin<BR>Travelogues at www.appleberryroad.com

For American Express card holders, on the Disney UK site there used to be a special phone # in London to call for Lion King tickets. Is this the # that someone said is not working? They have excellent seats, and charge only for the price of a ticket, no surcharge.

I ascribe to JPM's philosophy (save time, not money) and get tickets through ticketmaster.co.uk (reasonable fee)<BR><BR>But beforehand, I go to albemarle-london.com to get the seating plan so I can at least know where the seats are that ticketmaster is offering. Albemarle also has reviews, etc.<BR><BR>I notice that timeout lists Lion King as the top seller in London now, so it seems to me that buying tickets ahead of time makes sense especially since it seems that the play might end June 30, 2002.