Collingwood RSC The Millennium Hall, HMS Collingwood.

THE traditional family panto is alive and well, and currently being lovingly nurtured by this talented company, with every rib-tickling ingredient you could wish for.

Set in London Town, The High Seas, The Ocean Bed and a South Sea Island, we follows Dick’s progress (confidently played by Abi Philo) and his talking cat Tommy (uber-cool Tom Rawlings) as he meets and falls in love with Alice Fitzwarren (Lucy Sumner in her first leading role).

Hindered by the outrageous Dame Sarah Stewpot (Robin Sheppard, all risqué ad-libs and increasingly preposterous frocks), they fight the dastardly Queen Rat (leather-clad Emma Hughes) and her dim side-kicks Bish and Bosh (Kerry Breen and Jane Blatch-Gainey) to achieve the traditional panto happy ending.

A most effective Ultra-Violet monster scene added to the fun, while Amy Summers’ excellent choreo-graphy and a variety of good-looking costumes ensured writer/director Sarah Miatt’s first venture into panto-land was a most promising start.

Ed Howson