Malvern venue flush with pride at scoring top rating

Good things come in small packages, so the saying goes. And this week, a former lavatory that is now known as the world’s smallest theatre has proved the point.

Malvern’s Theatre of Small Convenience, which caters for an audience capacity of just 12 people, has been recognised by that trusted gauge of public opinion – TripAdvisor.

The ex-toilet venue has been presented with one of the travel website’s highest accolades: the Certificate of Excellence. In order to win this, a business must “consistently achieve” four or five-star reviews by travellers.

Not wishing to urinate all over the venue’s parade, but Tabard could not help but notice the number of visitors who actually reviewed the TSC. According to reports, the venue earned its badge of excellence from its 25 five-star ratings out of a total of just 31 reviews since 2011.

There is also the issue of expectation. Take Norwich Theatre Royal, also a recipient of a 2014 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence. The team behind this company has earned itself 188 five-star recommendations from visitors in the past year.

For this larger building, which seats up to 1,300, one feels the ability to provide a top-notch service is a different ball game altogether in comparison to a pokey, former loo.

Tabard knows that bringing pleasure to a small group in a public lavatory is not always easy. But one rather feels that with the TSC, a five-star review would be instantly given if only to discover the absence of a sewage aroma.