I arrived in London last evening and during a brief stroll through jam-packed Leicester Square I was shocked by the change of names of the half-price ticket booths.
For ages now, I for one, have been touting that there is only one "official" half price ticket booth in Leicester Square and to be sure to go to that one only -- the free standing building in the "park" in the square. But recently that booth (which is the official booth of the London Society of Theatres) changed its name to TKTS. As a result I saw three of the "rip-off" places now have big signs declaring themselves, "OFFICIAL HALF-PRICE TICKET BOOTH".

So buyer beware. I still maintain that the other booths will use various tactics to sell you cheap seats at inflated prices. For example selling you a rear balcony seat that normally sells for 10 pounds for 15 pounds and telling you that's half price!

More on London later -- what a beautiful day here! I'm ready to get out and enjoy it.

Thanks for the heads-up, Patrick! Since TKTS is the name used by the official half-price theater ticket sellers in NYC, I wonder if the London name change is the result of some sort of new official alliance?

Patrick, maybe I was lucky, since I didn't realize the difference, but I purchased 4 tickets for My Fair Lady from a booth on the Thames, right behind the Marriott County Hall, next to the Eye, and got a great price, great seats and no problems. Was this one not an authorized booth?

LoisL - I saw your mention of the booth near the eye in another thread. I have never seen that one - the last time I was on the Eye or near the Marriott was in early december and while I wasn't looking for tix then I did not notice the one you used.

However - the truly only "official" 1/2 price booth is the TKTS one Patrick describes. They changed the name to TKTS 2 or 3 years ago but it is the Society of West End Theatres sanctioned booth.

I think you mentioned paying £26 for your tickets (I'm a little foggy about the details - I suppose I could pull up the other thread but never mind)

That is not a bad price for a good ticket but is more than 1/2 the cost of any seat

Oops - didn't mean to post yet . . . .

That is more than 1/2 price for the best seats for MFL.

Hi Janis,

WE did get excellent seats in the Orchestra section, but then, maybe this place was charging something more? All I know is that it was right where we were staying, and we were very happy with the price, since tickets for Broadway shows are so much more. I have frequently paid $100 - $110 per ticket here, if not going to the tkts booth. Guess after reading this, we were lucky to have done alright with it. I won't be volunteering that info anymore!

In reply to the question about using the name TKTS, I seem to recall that there was a bit of a law suit from the New York group last year when the London group started using that names. In any case here is what it now says on the back of tickets purchased at the TKTS booth in London"
"tkts is atrademark owned by and used under licence from Theatre Development Fund Inc. There is no other relationship of affiliation between The Society of London Theatre and Theatre Development Fund Inc., a New York not-for-profit corporation."
In other words, apparently the London group paid to use that name or is paying on a regular basis or else reached another agreement to use the name.

LoisL, yes you probably paid a little more than at the half-price booth, but I agree with you. If you enjoyed the show, getting the tickets was convenient, and you are happy, who cares? I agree, even a full price ticket in London is far cheaper than one in New York, so London Theatre is a "deal" any way you look at it.