The patent theatres were the theatres that were licensed to perform "spoken drama" after the English Restoration of Charles II in 1660. Other theatres were prohibited from performing such "serious" drama, but were permitted to show comedy, musicals, pantomime or melodrama.

Drury Lane and Covent Garden eventually became home to the patent holders, this patent was sold on to any new owner. The two patent theatres closed in the summer months. To fill the gap, Samuel Foote's Theatre Royal, Haymarket became a third patent theatre in London in 1766 but only to show plays during these months.
Covent Garden Theatre burnt down in 1808 after a production of Pizarro, the belief being that a piece of wadding shot from a cannon wedged itself in the scenery and despite an inspection at midnight, by four o'clock in the morning the fire had taken hold and destroyed the theatre completely. The roof caved in at six in the morning and 22 men lost their lives in trying to save it, they were not helped by the lack of water got to the fire engines. By eight the whole theatre was annihilated.
The troupe relocated to the King's Theatre (now Her Majesty's Theatre) under a temporary patent and then in 1809 before Covent Garden was completed Drury Lane burnt down too. This time, workmen letting a fire inside burn on overnight. An unprecedented state of affairs leaving no permanent patent theatre in London.

Work began on the new theatre on 31st December 1808 and was amazingly completed by the 18th September 1809. A contemporary description of the New Theatre Covent Garden follows.

There are four circles of boxes, as in the old theatre; their height is the same, and the general form a semicircle, 50 feet in diameter, having the sides prolonged towards the stage. There are no boxes upon the stage. The Proscenium is decorated by two pilasters, in imitation of Sienna marble, on each side; the capitals gold antique, supporting an arch, 42 feet in diameter. This arch supports a solid wall of brick-work, carried up through the roof.
The soffit is enriched with sunk panels and flowers, gilt. The kings arms, supporters couch.
ant, are placed above the arch. The drapery is of scarlet cloth, painted, hanging within the arch, and enriched with gold wreaths. The fronts of the boxes are white, having a Greek ornament, continued through their whole length, with gold upon a light pink ground. The styles are deeply enriched with stars, and the mouldings richly gilt. The architrave is of a warm cream colour, supported by slender fluted and gilt coIumns from the top of each runs a gilt iron bracket, suspending a superb gold and glass chandelier. The stage-doors are white and gold, and, over each, is suspended a magnificent lustre. The sides of the pit, below the boxes, are painted in imitation of yellow stained marble. In the centre of the gold wreaths, over the arch of the proscenium, is the motto of the stage, "Veluti a Speculum," written in gold letters. A range of arches supports the ceiling, which is formed into a circle, and painted in concentric compartments.
The first and second circles of the boxes are appropriated to the public. In each box are three rows of seats, covered with light blue cloth.
The back of the boxes are pink-coloured, and the doors solid mahogony.
The third is a circle of boxes, separated entirely from the rest, and let annually. The principal entrance to these is, by a semi-circular stone staircase, from Prince's place. They are each separated from the corridor by a small anti-room, about 6 feet wide; the object of which was to remove the spectators from the noise of the corridor. These anti-rooms, scarcely large enough to contain three small chairs, their only furniture, have been the subject of great misrepresentation. To this circle is a saloon, provided for the use of the renters, nearly of the same size with that attached to the lower circles, and filled up with sofas, extending, on each side, between pedestals, on which statues are placed. The walls of this room are cream-coloured, with gold.
The whole of these boxes are to be thrown open to the public, at the end of the present season, with the exception of three on each side next the stage. The lower gallery occupies the centre part of the south circle. The seats of the upper gallery are in the arches which support the ceiling, not one of which is provided in such a manner as that the spectator may not have a complete view of the stage. The comparative admeasurements of the several parts of this house with the old theatre and that of Drury-Lane have been pubIished by the proprietors, as follows;
The boxes are calculated to hold as many spectators in the present as in the old theatre, but one hundred and forty more persons are provided
with seats in the lower circles. Six feet six inches is the average depth allowed to the three rows in each box. Six feet three was allowed in the old theatre, and six feet in Drury-lane.
In the old theatre, twenty seats were contained in the pit, their whole declivity three feet. In the new theatre, there are also twenty seats, but their declivity is four feet nine inches. In the two-shilling gallery, a person seated in the back row of the old theatre was 88 feet from the stage-door, in the present theatre, he is distant only 86, and in Drury-Lane he was 100. In the upper gallery of the old theatre, the last row was 93 feet from the stage-door, in the present only 85, and in Drury-Lane it was 104.
The house is lighted by glass chandeliers in front of each circle; 270 wax candles are consumed in them every night. Three hundred patent lamps light the stage and scenery, and nearly as many more are fixed in the corridors and staircases. The stage is provided, on each side, with arched recesses in which the scenes are deposited. The scenes are 29, feet high. There are three green-rooms for the performers. The dressing-rooms for the men, their wardrobes, &c. are all on one side. The same for the women are on the opposite side of the house, The carpenters' shop and painters' rooms are at the extremity of the stage, and are nearly 80 feet long.