BP sponsorship of Royal Opera House ends after 33 years

Move leaves British Museum and Science Museum isolated as arts institutions with fossil fuel sponsors

Campaigners have hailed a “seismic shift” in arts funding after the Royal Opera House confirmed it had severed its sponsorship relationship with BP after more than three decades.

The oil and gas multinational has been a sponsor of the ROH since 1988, most recently under a five-year deal that began in 2018. However, in a statement on Wednesday the opera house said there had been an “agreement” that the funding would not be renewed.