Cock: West End play with Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey reduces ticket prices after uproar over £400 seats

A West End play featuring Bridgerton lead Jonathan Bailey has lowered its ticket prices after receiving mass criticism for selling top seats for £400.

The revival of Mike Bartlett’s play Cock at the Ambassadors Theatre, Covent Garden, gained backlash on social media with users describing the prices as “utterly obscene” and “shameful’’.

A spokesperson for the show said on Tuesday that as Cock was reaching the end of its limited 13-week run and “the remaining premium ticket seats are based on supply and demand”.

But tickets have since been reduced to £175, bringing them down to industry standard.

Earlier this week, screengrabs were shared showing that the production’s official booking system had several seats in the stalls in a £400 price band, plus booking fee.

This inspired a number of jokes around the show’s title, including comedian Bethany Black who wrote: “£400 for cock in the stalls? What ever happened to Free Willy?”

While Harry Bilney wrote:“It’s a bit of a d*** move from ATG if you ask me…”

In its defence, the spokesperson for Cock said that since it went on sale last year: “15% of all tickets sold have been at £20”.

They added that there is a daily lottery for every performance, where tickets are also available for £20, but declined to comment further on the pricing of the show.

Cock isn’t the only West End play that has been criticised for overpriced tickets.

The Olivier award-winning revival of Cabaret, which starred Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley in its original cast, was also criticised for charging £325 for its most expensive seats.

Although these tickets included a tasting menu and champagne.

Directed by Marianne Elliott, Cock is a satirical play about a man named John (Bailey) struggling to choose between his long-term male partner and a charming woman.

The show starred Rocketman’s Taron Egerton when it first opened in March, but he withdrew from the play last month citing personal reasons.

Egerton fainted during the first performance and later tested positive for Covid-19.

Cock will run at the Ambassadors Theatre till June 4 2022.