FIRMS involved in the botched construction of Colchester’s Firstsite arts centre were forced to pay back £7.75 million following legal actions, it has been revealed.

The long-awaited landmark, nicknamed the Golden Banana, was originally due to cost £16.3 million and open in October 2007.

But design problems, delays and flooding saw the construction cost spiral to £28.2 million by the time Firstsite was finally unveiled in September 2011.

Now, nearly two years after the venue finally opened for the first time, Colchester Council has revealed a series of legal actions successfully recouped £5.75 million.

It means the overall cost of the project, largely paid for by the public purse, was £22.45 million.

The authority made a £2 million gamble when it agreed, without the financial backing of Firstsite’s other funders, to hand Anthony Collins Solicitor borrowed cash to pursue at least four firms.

For a special report, see Monday's Gazette