It’s the season of goodwill to all men… well nearly all men. To be frank, there just isn’t going to be any goodwill for those dastardly pantomime villains. They’re going to be hissed at, booed at and screamed at by hordes of outraged children and no doubt a good few adults getting caught up in the excitement (I make no promises that I’ll refrain from joining in). And that’s just as it should be; shouting at wonderfully OTT panto’ villains is as much part of a traditional British Christmas as decorating a tree.
This year Skype have gotten in on the act by sponsoring 24 pantomimes across the UK produced by panto’ giants Qdos. From Aberdeen to Plymouth and Neverland to the Cloud Kingdom, the shows will bring thrills, Christmas cheer and outrageous costumes to some of the country’s most enthusiastic audiences.
Images via Qdos
There are some real British entertainment icons amongst the stars including the likes of the Chuckle Brothers, John Barrowman, Steve McFadden (Phil Mitchell from Eastenders) and Craig Revel Horwood.
Rather than just posting a dull list of the shows and their venues we’ve decided to spread a little Christmas sparkle by making up a map instead. Just click on a location to see which show’s on where, who the stars are and the dates it’ll run for.
As a rather nice added touch, Skype have arranged for one of the shows to be brought to the Great Ormond Street Hospital for sick children via some electronic internet magic. On December 13th children in the hospital and their families will get to experience the Peter Pan pantomime running in Llandudno, Wales.
As they’ll be watching on a two way Skype video call they’ll get the chance to interact with the cast. Meaning when they boo, hiss and shout at Captain Hook he’ll be able to hear them, and when they shout “He’s behind you” at Peter Pan he’ll be able to answer them with a classic “Oh, no he isn’t”.
At the launch event in Great Ormond Street, Strictly Come Dancing judge, Craig Revel Horwood was on hand to talk about the project:
“Christmas is a very special time of year for families and we are delighted that the Qdos Entertainment partnership with Skype allows a pantomime to be broadcast live into Great Ormond Street Hospital in what is a fab-u-lous and unique event. As well as the live broadcast we are thrilled to be raising funds for the Hospital which treats sick children from across the country.”
Are you going to get involved in some Christmas pantomime fun this year? If so, we’d love to hear about your plans, just leave a comment below.
