Kenneth Tynan theatre critic until mid-1963 when he joined the National Theatre. In 1963, Laurence Olivier became the British National Theatre Company's first artistic director. Tynan had been highly dismissive of Olivier's achievements as artistic director of the Chichester Festival Theatre, which had opened in 1962, but he recommended himself for the role of literary manager. Olivier was initially outraged by Tynan's presumption but Olivier's wife, Joan Plowright, convinced him that Tynan would be an asset at the National Theatre Company, then based at the Old Vic theatre. When he became the National Theatre's literary manager, Tynan ceased to be the theatre
The Old Vic Tunnels theatre production at The Old Vic Tunnels was "Top Story" by Sebastian Michael, directed by Adam Berzsenyi-Bellaagh, which ended its run there on 2 February 2013. From 9 August 2014 the space will be reopened under new management and the name House of Vans London The Old Vic Tunnels saw Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros create five nights of the Wild West on Mars featuring theatre companies and artists Theatre Delicatessen, BattleActs, Les Enfants Terribles and Phil Mann; the New York Dolls perform; Secret Cinema transformed the space into an Algerian market town; a summer term from the National