The British writer, who penned hit musicals such as Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar, is adamant some buildings in the famed West End district are outdated, shabby, and have restricted views of the auditorium.

Speaking at the London Press Club awards last week (ends19Apr15), he declared, "I believe that London would be a more vibrant place if we allow a more flexible use of theatres and recognise that some of the theatres may no longer really be exactly what we want in the 21st century. There are theatres from which frankly you can't see and that aren't fit for today's purpose.

"In London we've got some wonderful theatres. But tastes change. Today we require theatres in a clearly different way, with a much more flexible space. We can't think of our theatre stock as just as fossilised buildings because they've been built that way all this time. The theatre is a living, breathing space."

In 2013, a large part of the ceiling at London's Apollo Theatre collapsed during a performance of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, leaving 76 audience members injured and sparking safety fears over the condition of ancient theatres.