Linda Williams had been looking forward to seeing Mary Poppins with her mum
Linda Williams was unable to go and see Mary Poppins at the Palace Theatre with her disabled mum because the lift was out of order(Image: Linda Williams)
A woman has been left furious after being told she would be unable to take her mum to see Mary Poppins at the Palace Theatre just hours before the show was due to start.
Linda Williams had booked tickets to see the show, one of her favourite stories, with her 88-year-old mum Joan over the Easter weekend.
Due to Joan having difficulty walking, Linda made sure that the theatre knew they would need extra support to get to their seats for the matinee performance on April 19. But just after Linda booked a taxi at around midday to set off from their home in Stockport, she got a call from the Palace telling her that the lift was broken.
This meant that unless Joan was able to climb up 25 steps to where their seats were, they would not be able to go. Medical secretary Linda was forced to postpone her and her mum’s Easter plans together until next month.
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Despite rescheduling, Linda, 66, said she has been left worrying whether this performance will also end up being affected by the theatre’s lift breaking.
“It’s going to happen again,” she said. “I’m not even looking forward to the new date, because in the back of my mind I’m thinking are we going to be able to go.
“Maybe if had booked it for the week earlier we could have seen it, it was just on the day.”
The Palace Theatre, Manchester(Image: Andrew Stuart)
She added: “I’m really really disappointed and upset. I can’t believe this has happened after waiting all this time.”
“Taking a disabled person with me, I feel that we were discriminated against.”
This is also not the first time that guests with disabilities have faced access issues at the Palace Theatre.
In December 2024, Danielle Maycox was looking forward to seeing Wicked, and had booked her ticket more than a year in advance.
But when wheelchair user Danielle arrived at the venue she found out that she would not be able to access her seat due to the lift not working.
In a statement, the Palace Theatre & Opera House said: “We sincerely apologise that our passenger lift is currently out of service.
“We understand how frustrating and inconvenient this may be, and please rest assured that we are working hard with our lift contractor and service provider to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.
“Our venue team are in direct contact with Linda and are also contacting all affected patrons attending performances scheduled during the lift repair period to explore alternative adjustments and solutions.”
The Manchester Evening News asked the Palace Theatre if they have any plans to put a contingency in place if the lift breaks down again in the future, but they declined to comment on this.