No expansion on rival's doorstep

Jongleurs has dropped its plans to open two comedy clubs in a landmark London location.

The chain had planned to take over 1 Leicester Square, formerly the Home superclub, right on the doorstep of long-established rival The Comedy Store.

But now Jongleurs owners Regent Inns says it does not intend to complete the buying process after the exchange of contracts last year.

It had planned two comedy clubs, a nightclub and a Walkabout Australian-themed bar in the building, although he deal became bogged down in licensing negotiations.

Instead, Regent has announced that it is buying the Limelight nightclub in Shaftesbury Avenue and the Shoeless Joe's site on the Embankment at Temple - and converting both into Walkabouts.

Stephen Haupt, chief executive of Regent, said: "We have decided that, while confident that we would eventually have been successful in obtaining the necessary licences for all of the brands involved in our application in Leicester Square, we no longer need to pursue this project given our recent success in acquiring the Limelight and Shoeless Joe's venues, which meet our strategic objective of significantly increasing our exposure in Central London."

Published: 15 Aug 2002