TRURO'S Hall for Cornwall has finally broken free of its debt-ridden past and is no longer a struggling entertainment venue.

Five years ago HfC had a crippling deficit running into nearly seven figures and was forced to turn to the Arts Council to survive. Now it is in the black and its future looks secure following the annual review which was published last week.

The report reveals that Cornwall's foremost performing arts venue had a hugely successful year both artistically and financially and is now amongst the top 17% of theatres in the country by turnover.

Much of this turnaround is due to the leadership of HfC director and chief executive Tim Brinkman, who took over its running in 1999, though he puts it down to the hard work of his staff. "We have got a lot of good people working here and most of our volunteer stewards have stuck by us and the idea of a theatre for Cornwall.

"When I took over the HfC was in a really difficult situation. The building of the theatre took a lot out of the organisation and massive debts meant we were trying to operate with a millstone around our necks.

"But thanks to the support of the public which has led to an increase in the numbers of people using the theatre we have managed to achieve healthy figures."