The 51-year-old from Dorset was in attendance at a major event here today to mark 100 days to go to the start of the Olympic Games which saw 100 West End cast members perform a warm-up exercise routine around the Olympic Countdown Clock.

The event was organised by the Society of London Theatre (SOLT), the trade association that represents the producers, theatre owners and managers of the major commercial and grant-aided theatres in central London and Daldry, the award winning English theatre and film director and producer most commonly associated with Billy Elliot, took the opportunity to praise the West End Theatre.

"The West End is the theatre capital of the world," Daldry told insidethegames.

"It is one of the things we do extremely well and that we are incredibly well celebrated for.

"People will obviously come to London during the Olympics and Paralympics for the sport but they need to enjoy the city in every possible way and they can do that through all of the cultural activities going during the Games."

Daldry (pictured below) also said that there will be great deals for people wanting to go to the West End during the Games.


"The message we want to get out today is that we have great discounts both for domestic and international visitors because we want people to be part of not just the greatest sporting event ever staged in Britain but also the greatest cultural event," he said.

"The Games are obviously taking place in London but they are actually for the whole country and the whole world.

"London 2012 are fully behind not just the sport but also the cultural aspects of the Games which is why there are so many cultural events exploding across the UK during the Olympics and Paralympics.

"The West End will be a key focal point of that cultural celebration and given that 95 per cent of West End theatres are a 15 minute walk, or less, from mainline stations there's every reason for people to head to the theatres in their droves next summer."

The West End contains many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, Government buildings and entertainment venues while it is currently the most expensive location in the world in which to rent office space.

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