Sky News has learnt that Really Useful Group (RUG) has instructed headhunters from Russell Reynolds Associates to identify a new CEO.

The company oversees the production and licensing operations of one of the world's best-known theatrical empires.

Among the plays and musicals it has been responsible for have been the West End and Broadway smash hit The Phantom of the Opera, as well as the more recent Cinderella, which caused controversy when it closed last year.

RUG's new chief executive will replace Charles Farmer, whose appointment was only announced in March 2022.

Filings at Companies House show that he resigned in February, although a person close to the company said he had effectively stopped working there at the end of last year.

Mr Farmer is a former executive at MGM International Television Productions.

RUG also oversees the licensing of titles such as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for school productions.

In addition, the company controls the film and television rights to Lord Lloyd Webber's catalogue of work.

A spokesman for RUG declined to comment.