Landlords take possession over unpaid rent

Landlords have taken possession of the venue run by organisers of the beleaguered Leicester Comedy Festival over unpaid rent, Chortle can reveal.

News that the Big Difference site in Leicester High Street has been closed down will add to fears for the thousands of pounds owed to comedians who performed at February’s festival. Performers last heard from the charity – also called Big Difference – in May with a promise that unpaid box office receipts would be paid by the end of August.

A possession notice was yesterday slapped on the front door of the venue from Leicester-based commercial estate agents Andrew & Ashwell. 

It read: ‘Due to non-payment of rent and insurance under the terms and conditions of the Lease dated 16(th) April, 2021, made between Sansom Enterprises (Midlands) Limited as Landlords and Big Difference Productions Limited as Tenant. We have entered these premises by order of the Landlord and have taken possession of the premises and the Leases hereby determined. Any attempt by you or your Agents to enter the demised premises, will result in criminal/civil proceedings being taken against you.’

And this afternoon, the venue posted on social media: ‘Closed until further notice due to the financial struggles of our parent company, Big Difference Company (charity) They have been unable to pay rent on the venue.

‘This has resulted in the landlord/letting agency locking us out of the venue. At this time we don't know when we will be able to reopen.

'This isn't another story of a struggling venue having to close its doors due to low ticket sales. I want to make it very clear that The Big Difference (venue) has been a success and that has been due to the hard work of all the staff and the amazing support we have had from the community.'

'For all upcoming shows there will be refunds to ticket holders. Expect that everything is cancelled unless told otherwise in the next update.

'Please respect the privacy of our staff at this time and be respectful in your comments. A lot of people are having a really bad time at the moment and no single individual is solely to blame for this situation.'

The post was signed 'Big Tony' – believed to be venue manager Anthony Lamb.

Venue operators The Big Difference Productions Ltd is a commercial company run by the same people as The Big Difference Company, the charity behind the annual comedy festival.

The premises, which comprise a ground-level bar, mezzanine, and basement was opened in 2020 and hosted touring comedy shows as well as events during the Leicester Comedy Festival. It has a total capacity of 250.

Forthcoming events still advertised on its website include tour dates for comedians Nina Gilligan and Kim Blyth in the autumn. 

Accounts filed at Companies House in March for the year up to June 2025 showed the Productions company was £56,000 in the red. 

In April, Chortle was the first to report that hundreds of performers were still owed money from their festival ticket sales, with The Big Difference Company blaming cash-flow problems. At the time, festival chiefs said they put their ‘operational expenditure’ over paying comedians.

However, when the BBC picked up the story, chief executive  Michael Harris-Wakelam then told them he was ‘prioritising’ artists ‘to the detriment of some of our other planned activities.’

A large outdoor gig planned by the company for June 14 and featuring Lou Sanders, &Phil Ellis and Tom Rosenthal was cancelled with ten days’ notice amid reports of poor ticket sales.

Chortle has approached Harris-Wakelam and  Andrew & Ashwell for comment about the Big Difference venue. 

Published: 7 Jul 2026