Council approve extra theatre aid

Further repairs are needed at the theatre and Bishop's Palace

Highland councillors have agreed to give more funding for a project to refurbish Inverness's Eden Court Theatre.

Theatre bosses said the £19.3m revamp will require a further £3m.

Highland Council was asked to provide £600,000. Officials recommended approving the funding.

Repairs to the 30-year-old theatre and nearby 19th Century Bishop's Palace will run to £2m. The remaining £1m would be for "unforeseen issues".

Eden Court said the repairs would delay its reopening. It was to play a lead role in Highland Year of Culture.

More than two-thirds of the work has been completed.

As well as building new facilities, the Eden Court project includes major repairs to the theatre, which was built in 1976, and the Bishop's Palace which was completed in 1878.

Eden Court said flaws with the two buildings had been known prior to the start of the work.

However, further defects had been found including extensive rot across the three-storey palace.