The cloakroom at the Lyceum will not take your coat. It takes suitcases, heavy bags, rucksacks and pushchairs, and nothing else, which is the reverse of what a cloakroom usually does and the opposite of what most West End theatres offer. If you are carrying a coat in January, you are wearing it through the show.
It opens an hour before the performance. For anything it will not take, the nearest left luggage is at Charing Cross station. The theatre also says it is not responsible for loss or damage to belongings left there.
Everything below comes from the official Lion King and Lyceum pages, read on 10 October 2026.
Bags and security
Bag checks may happen, so the theatre asks you to leave extra time, and recommends not bringing suitcases, rucksacks or large bags at all. Given the cloakroom will take exactly those items but not a coat, the sensible plan is to arrive with as little as possible.
Ages
The Lion King is recommended for ages 6 and up. Children under 3 are not admitted to the theatre at all. Anyone aged 16 or under must be with an adult and cannot sit on their own in the auditorium, and everyone entering needs a ticket whatever their age, including babies in arms who would not be allowed in anyway.
The show runs about 2 hours 30 minutes including an interval, and contains theatrical smoke and fog along with strobe lighting in parts. There is no dress code. Cameras and sound recording are strictly prohibited.
Access performances are scheduled a long way out
The dated access performances listed when we looked were all in 2027: a captioned performance on Tuesday 2 March at 7.30pm, a signed performance on Sunday 7 March at 2.30pm, an audio described performance on Thursday 11 March at 7.30pm and a relaxed performance with a BSL interpreter on Sunday 27 June at 1.30pm. If you need one of those, the booking window is long, but so is the wait.
Between those dates, the show uses GalaPro, an app that provides real-time captions and audio description on your own phone, with translated subtitles in French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese and Spanish. That is the practical option for most dates.
Two documents are published in advance and are genuinely useful: a visual story, which walks through the visit in pictures, and a sensory synopsis covering the lights, sounds and emotions through the performance. Relaxed performances lower the volume, reduce flashing and strobing, dim the house lights rather than blacking out, have cast members introduce the show to make clear it is fiction, and allow the audience to move about and make noise, with breakout areas in the bars. Sensory bags can be requested on the day.
Inside the building
The Ballroom bar, named after the theatre’s years as the Lyceum Ballroom, opens to ticket holders only, an hour and a half before the show. There are more bars on every level, confectionery kiosks throughout, and merchandise kiosks on each level. Toilets are on every level with accessible facilities in the stalls. Free guest wi-fi runs throughout, though phones must be off during the performance.
The building itself
There has been a theatre called the Lyceum on this Covent Garden site since 1765. The English Opera House burned down in 1830 and only the pillared portico survives from the earlier building. Henry Irving took over as manager in 1878 and hired Bram Stoker as his business manager, who wrote Dracula inside the Lyceum in 1897 and drew on Irving for the character.
Bertie Crewe rebuilt it in 1904. London County Council bought it in 1939 planning to demolish it, along with the Aldwych, Novello, Vaudeville and Adelphi, for road improvements, and it closed with John Gielgud playing Hamlet. The roads never happened. It reopened after the war as a ballroom, where the Who, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Queen and Prince all played, Prince making his UK debut there in 1981. It was Grade II listed in 1978 and reopened as a theatre in 1996 after a £15 million refurbishment.
Lyceum Theatre
- Address
- 21 Wellington Street, London WC2E 7RQ
- Nearest
- Covent Garden, Charing Cross or Temple
- Hours
- Performances of The Lion King, about 2 hours 30 minutes including an interval. The Ballroom bar opens to ticket holders 90 minutes before, and the cloakroom an hour before
- Booking
- Through ATG or the official Lion King site. Access tickets are booked through the Lyceum access page after registering for access concessions
- Price
- By performance. Book through the venue or the official Lion King site
- Standing
- The Grade II listed Covent Garden theatre, home of Disney's The Lion King, with a theatre on the site since 1765 and a spell as the Lyceum Ballroom where Prince made his UK debut
How to get in
The cloakroom takes suitcases, heavy bags, rucksacks and pushchairs but not coats. Children under 3 are not admitted, the show is recommended for ages 6 and up, and under-16s must sit with an adult. Theatrical smoke, fog and strobe lighting feature. Cameras and recording are prohibited
Where to go next
The best West End shows covers what else is on, and the London Palladium and the Coliseum publish comparable visitor rules.
Covent Garden covers the streets around it, and cheap theatre tickets covers getting in for less.
Questions we get asked
Does the Lyceum Theatre have a cloakroom?
Yes, but it does not currently accept coats. It takes suitcases, heavy bags, rucksacks and pushchairs only, and opens an hour before the show. The nearest left luggage is at Charing Cross station.
What age is The Lion King suitable for?
It is recommended for ages 6 and up. Children under 3 are not admitted to the theatre, everyone needs a ticket regardless of age, and anyone aged 16 or under must be accompanied by an adult and cannot sit alone in the auditorium.
How long is The Lion King at the Lyceum?
About 2 hours 30 minutes including an interval.
Does The Lion King have strobe lighting?
Yes. The show contains theatrical smoke and fog effects as well as strobe lighting during parts of it.
Are there captioned or signed performances of The Lion King?
Yes, though they are scheduled far ahead. When we looked, the dated ones were a captioned performance on 2 March 2027, a signed performance on 7 March, an audio described performance on 11 March and a relaxed performance with BSL on 27 June 2027. On other dates the GalaPro app provides real-time captions and audio description on your own phone.
Can you take photos at the Lyceum Theatre?
No. The use of camera and sound recording equipment is strictly prohibited.
Where is the Lyceum Theatre in London?
At 21 Wellington Street in Covent Garden, WC2E 7RQ. There has been a theatre called the Lyceum on the site since 1765, and the current building was rebuilt by Bertie Crewe in 1904.
Written by Robert J Wills, no. 433 in the guide.
Last checked 10 October 2026 against the venues' own published information. Nobody pays to appear here and we take no bookings.
