Audience evacuated from London Lyceum theatre over bomb threat

Audience evacuated from performance of The Lion King in London Lyceum theatre over bomb threat with police and sniffer dogs scrambled to the scene

•  The Met Police said no device was found, and it was believed to be a hoax

A London West End theatre has been evacuated following reports of a bomb threat in the middle of a performance, police say.

Police officers and sniffer dogs were pictured around the Lyceum Theatre after asking visitors to vacate the building at around 5pm on Sunday.

Visitors attending a showing of The Lion King were hurried outside to wait behind police cordons as roads were closed off.

A spokesperson for the Met Police said no device was found, and it was believed to be a hoax. 

Twitter user isaaq67 said they were ‘evacuated from the Lyceum Theatre whilst watching The Lion King’ earlier today

File photo shows London’s famous Lyceum theatre in the West End

A spokesperson for the Met said: ‘Cordons were put in place as a precaution following receipt of a bomb threat at a theatre in Wellington Street WC2 at around 1600hrs on Sunday, 23 July.

‘The venue was searched and nothing found. Staff have returned and the incident has been stood down.’

Twitter user isaaq67 said they were ‘evacuated from the Lyceum Theatre whilst watching The Lion King’ earlier today.

 ‘Why is there an explosives dog?’

User Donnacha O’Riordan wrote: ‘Wasn’t expecting this level of drama …. evacuated in the middle of a show at the Lyceum Theatre, Police & sniffer dogs on the scene now.’

Disney’s The Lion King is now in its 24th year at London’s Lyceum Theatre, a longtime family favourite seen by more than 110mn people worldwide.