Rupert Gavin, the former BBC Worldwide and Odeon Cinemas chief, is to become the next chairman of English National Ballet (ENB) amid intensifying debate about the funding of London’s arts scene.

Sky News has learnt Mr Gavin has been picked to succeed Sir Roger Carr, the veteran businessman who stepped down last year as chairman of BAE Systems, the defence contractor.

An announcement is said to be likely as early as Tuesday.

Mr Gavin is a respected figure in the arts and culture arenas, having also chaired Historic Royal Palaces for several years.

His appointment as Sir Roger’s successor will come less than two months after Tamara Rojo, the ENB’s former artistic director, criticised a decision to divert tens of millions of pounds of Arts Council England funding to recipients based outside London.

That decision has been particularly problematic for English National Opera, which was told to move outside the capital in order to qualify for future grants.

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ENB was founded in 1950 as London Festival Ballet by dancers Alicia Markova and Anton Dolin. It moved to a new home in east London in 2019.

It is a registered charity and in addition to Arts Council funding relies on raising £3m annually from private donors.

Last month, it staged Nutcracker at the London Coliseum, with a brief run of Giselle starting next week.

ENB has been contacted for comment.

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