Bayreuth: Some Wagners lose court case (others win)

The disinherited descendants of Richard Wagner have no right to run Bayreuth, a Bavarian district court has ruled.

The children of Wieland Wagner, led by the redoubtable Nike, had challenged the sole tenancy agreement for the festival theatre granted to their cousin Katharina, daughter of Wieland’s brother, Wolfgang.

The court decided that Katharina has sole rights to the theatre until 2040.

How much f this ruling is law and how simply German reverence for the holy grail and the status quo will take better lawyers than us to decide.

But anyone who thinks the matter is over knows nothing about the Wagners.

After ‘Yo-ho-to-ho’, the most popular line in the whole Wagner canon is ‘see you in court’.