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This year’s panto at the Bristol Hippodrome is Dick Whittington - ok, you know the story, poor penniless Dick walks to London with his faithful cat because he's heard the streets are paved with gold. Finding that they aren't (I think they used it all up on the set) he falls in with the Fitzwarren's where his cat cures their rat problem. Queen Rat then frames him for theft but he joins them on a sea voyage anyway where they wash up in Morocco, kill the rats, become rich and return to London where Dick becomes Lord Mayor for 3 successive terms (that last bit is true!). Meanwhile, the comedy is presented by Sarah the Cook and her hapless son. Variations exist, your mileage may vary, but that's the core of the "plot".
Britain’s Got Talent winners Ashleigh does a passable Alice Fitzwarren but we all know she is there because of Pudsey, who really is an excellent performer! The only problem with having Pudsey on stage (apart from him upstaging everyone) is that they have had to tone down Tommy the Cat (Hayley Jane Goold) who has become more cat-like than I have seen in previous productions. CBeebies' Ben Faulks (aka Mr Bloom) plays Dick, a bit of a thankless task in panto to be honest, but done well, and X Factor finalist Brenda Edwards provides us with a magical fairy. Queen Rat (Lara Denning) seems to enjoy having the evil part (and best costume!) and whips up some great booing when she appears alone or with her Ratlings.
Ben Goodridge (Sultan/Fitzwarren), Eic Potts and Andy Ford are a super team - just what any good panto needs. They keep us laughing, keep the plot (what there is of it) moving and provide some great (and wonderfully awful) visual and verbal humour. Great to see such easy talent on stage. As always, a special word for Andy Ford - brilliant, just brilliant!
The children are well disciplined and hugely talented (not sure if we saw blue or red team) and the chorus worked well, and worked hard as there were only 8 of them to fill the stage. Great music, lights and effects. Personally I don't need the 3D sequence (perhaps because I've seen it before) and while I realise the need for the sponsor's ad to be shown at the top of the show it really grated on me.
A proper family panto and a great night out ... note that this year they are doing some morning performances (poor cast!) and also a relaxed performance.
Great fun, thanks again Hippodrome!
p.s. How very curious, the last time Dick appeared at the Bristol Hippodrome (2010) the Lyric Hammersmith also had a Dick - and this year the same is true ... I know Dick walks from Bristol to London, but every day?! The set and the underwater sequence are the same as the 2010 production but the script has been adapted to the current cast. Anyway, its panto, we don't expect it to be particularly different, quite the opposite, we want it to be "as it always was" ... and that's what we got, good, old fashioned, panto ... except for the lack of a cross-dressed leading man/girl ... ahh well, at least we no longer get Postman Pat or a Power Ranger shoe-horned into the plot!
