He's Behind You!

It's a long time since I've been to the panto but when Mum and Dad were both ill and offered me their tickets I couldn't refuse!

I took Emily along to see Berwick Kalers annual performance at York Theatre Royal - it was his 30th year starring in the production which he also writes!

This year the story was Dick Turpin and it was fantastic!

It had so much in it and was jam-packed full of quips and anecdotes, references to local places and of course hilarious ad-libbing which made even the hardened cast (the baddie has been the baddie for the last 21 years!!) chortle a little too much at times! It was brilliant!

We had the Dr. Who theme music complete with Tardis, 'Bucks Fizz' singing 'Making Your Mind Up', Britains Got Talent as Yorks Got Talent, Ozzy Osbourne, Sharon Osbourne, fantastic Irish Dancing, Scooch - Flying the Flag, water tanks with people falling in, water flights, slapstick with a huge ball of dough, a pipe which blew air with such force that the actors faces were distorted like something from a Wallace and Gromit sketch!

There was the Rocky Horror song 'Timewarp' dance, fire-eating, ballet, flying on wires, blacked out stage with cast in fluorescent costumes doing the Ghostbuster song, quick change scene where Berwick Kaler had two characters who had to be on stage at the same time - incredibly quick!!

There was also real video footage of Dick Turpin in costume in London outside Buckingham Palace, riding Black Bess up The Mall and along the Embankment. Not to mention them both (Dick and Black Bess) getting on a train from Kings Cross to York Station - have you ever seen a pantomime horse refusing to get on a train and having to be pushed - what a sight!

All of this and all with the usual wagon wheel throwing, references to previous productions, booing and hissing the baddie - he did play a superb baddie! Whistling at the guy playing Dick - well he did look flipping fantastic in those leotard/tighty things!

Wow! What a night!

It was such fun and it really does make me want to go again - next year! Tickets go on sale in March ... watch this space :-)