Last month we bid farewell to London Theatre Direct Co-Founders Francis Hellyer and Emmanuel Ciolfi.

A farewell party – held at the stunning Nyetimber Secret Garden, part of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in Covent Garden – was attended by TE colleagues and LTD supporters and collaborators from across the theatre industry.

LTD’s CEO, Helen Enright, said: “LTD was one of the UK’s first theatre ticket websites and has gone on to become one of the world’s biggest theatre ticket agencies and distributors, selling more than £1 billion worth of tickets.

“Francis and Emmanuel have created and built from scratch, a pioneering, award-winning, theatre ticketing business, that has always led from the front. Forward-thinking, technologically advanced, and instantly recognisable, LTD is strongly positioned to continue this success story. I thank Francis and Emmanuel for their commitment, hard work, energy, and drive over the years and wish them both well for the future.”

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Emmanuel Ciolfi, said: “Francis and I started LTD 23 years ago when we were just kids in the back bedroom of our South London flat, with a simple idea to try and sell some tickets using the internet. Nobody else was doing it, and at the start of the internet revolution all we needed was some basic programming, a computer, and a printer. Looking back, we were incredibly naïve in those days, as was everyone. We couldn’t accept credit or debit cards; and everything was done by cheque and post. We used to have to send a pile of tickets every day from the local post office. But we just had faith in our abilities, and we threw everything into it.”

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Francis Hellyer, added: “Over the past two decades, we worked incredibly hard, and technology and innovation were always at the very heart of everything we created. Never could we have imagined how big London Theatre Direct would become and what a wonderful legacy we would leave behind. It’s an amazing testament to the strength of the brand, and the wonderful team who helped us get there.”

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During its 23-year history, LTD has clocked up many milestones and innovated the market. As one of the first UK theatre ticket websites, LTD was the first company to introduce live interactive seating plans for all London theatres, consolidated box office driven API across the entire West End and, boasts one of the largest social media followings of any UK ticket seller.