Anja Harteros made her Royal Opera House debut way back in 2008 as a late replacement for Nina Stemme in Simon Boccanegra.
What irony - she hasn't turned up for a gig since. Her first non-appearance of the current season was Il trittico. Having declined to participate in rehearsals, she's now out of next month's La bohème too - leaving unknown Celine Byrne to pick up the pay cheque, the BBC Maestro appearance, the live national Big Screen event and the DVD.
So what are the chances she'll make her final Covent Garden booking of the season, Otello? Let's prognosticate:
In case you're wondering about Celine Byrne, here's some sound-only footage of her Mimi:
