A former London Palladium and Ticketmaster executive chairs the Queen's Theatre. Its search for a new chief executive, paying up to £80,000, closes 9 November.

The Queen’s Theatre in Hornchurch has a new chair. Its board of trustees has appointed Spencer Phillips, who spent more than 20 years in senior roles in live entertainment, including at Andrew Lloyd Webber’s LW Theatres and Ticketmaster. The theatre announced the appointment on 30 September (Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch).

His first big job is to find the theatre a permanent chief executive. That search is now open, and applications close at 9am on Monday 9 November.

Black and white head and shoulders portrait of Spencer Phillips, a man with short grey hair and a goatee, wearing a jacket and open-necked shirt
Spencer Phillips, the new chair of Queen's Theatre Hornchurch. Photo: supplied by Queen's Theatre Hornchurch

Who Spencer Phillips is

According to the theatre’s announcement, his career includes:

  • senior roles at LW Theatres, where he worked on reviving the London Palladium and bringing back events such as the Royal Command Performance
  • work across the group’s other West End venues, including Theatre Royal Drury Lane and the Adelphi
  • senior management at Ticketmaster and The Path Entertainment Group
  • chairing Showtown, Blackpool’s museum of fun and entertainment, and the Blackpool Heritage and Museum Trust
  • a seat on the executive committee of the Royal Variety Charity

He said the Queen’s Theatre has “a proud history of making its own work, right at the heart of its community”. He wants to “secure its future for the next generation of audiences and artists”.

Sonja Lahiff, the board’s interim co-chair, said the trustees were “delighted”. She said he brings “strategic leadership, governance experience and a genuine passion for the arts”.

The chief executive job

The theatre advertised for a chair in July. That advert said the new chair would line-manage the chief executive and “lead the recruitment process for a permanent Chief Executive” (Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch, July 2026).

The chief executive post is now being recruited through the agency Peridot Partners (Peridot Partners). The job description sets out the terms (job description):

Detail What the theatre says
Salary £75,000 to £80,000, depending on experience
Contract Permanent, full time
Reports to The chair and board; also acts as company secretary
Manages Directors of finance, audiences, communities, HR, operations, Havering Changing, plus the creative director
Closing date 9am, Monday 9 November 2026

What it means for you

The Queen’s Theatre is a producing theatre: it makes its own shows rather than only hosting tours. It has a 507-seat auditorium, according to the recruitment advert. The theatre says more than 220,000 people use its programme and activities each year, from shows to community and schools work.

The chief executive is responsible for the theatre’s financial strategy and business plan, according to the job description. It names Arts Council England and Havering Council among the bodies the post-holder must work with. So the appointment will shape what the theatre puts on and how it pays for it.

This year’s pantomime, Robin Hood, runs from 18 November to 2 January, and the theatre announced its cast on 28 September (Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch). Dates, times and prices are on our Hornchurch pantomime page.

The theatre turns 75 in 2028. It sits on Billet Lane, RM11 1QT, and the box office is on 01708 443333.