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A multi-million pound initiative to establish a “happiness centre” in honor of the late Liverpool comedian Sir Ken Dodd has been scrapped after failing to secure funding.
The £15m project, which had received approval from Liverpool Council last year, was intended to be built adjacent to the Royal Court Theatre in the city center.
The proposed center aimed to showcase Sir Ken’s extensive personal collection of artifacts and joke books, while also providing performance spaces for aspiring entertainers.
However, the scheme’s trustees, including Lady Anne Dodd, Sir Ken’s widow, have confirmed “with a heavy heart” that the project will not proceed due to unsuccessful attempts to secure funding from the National Heritage Lottery Fund.
Consequently, the charitable foundation established in Sir Ken’s name has announced its “reluctant” withdrawal from the project.
The trustees of the Ken Dodd Charitable Foundation (KDCF) and the Royal Court Liverpool Trust (RCLT) had collaborated for eight months to explore alternative funding options.
Despite having already invested in the project’s development, design, and planning, with a pledge from KDCF to cover two-thirds of the cost of a new build, both organizations cited a challenging public funding landscape for new capital projects.
Prior to his death in 2018 at the age of 90, Sir Ken established the foundation to support performing arts charities and organizations across the UK, with a particular focus on Merseyside.
Confirming the decision to abandon the “fantastic idea,” Lady Anne stated: “Comedy was Ken’s life, and he was always eager to help, advise, and offer encouragement to new comedians and new talent.”
“An iconic museum and heritage attraction where entertainers could rehearse and perform, linked to a permanent exhibition of Ken’s treasured artifacts and joke books, would have been a most fitting tribute to a man who was viewed as a national icon, not just in Liverpool.”
“It is a shame, despite the best efforts of the Royal Court Theatre and the Ken Dodd Charitable Foundation, that we could not attract the level of funding necessary to turn our vision into reality.”
Gillian Miller, chief executive of the Royal Court Theatre, added: “There simply aren’t sufficient funds available to meet the demands of so many projects like ours at this moment in time.”
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