SHE'S practically perfect in every way and she's casting a spell over Southampton.

Mary Poppins has made her long-awaited arrival at Mayflower Theatre and is delighting audiences in the most magical of musicals.

Zizi Strallen is spectacular as the all singing, all dancing, all flying nanny with the bottomless bag and non-stop succession of fabulous fun and life lessons for her small charges, Jane and Michael Banks, stars of the future Maia West and Santiago Weston.

She appears in a puff of smoke after a delightful rendition of The Perfect Nanny, confidently presuming she is just what the Banks family are after.

Shooting stars break out as she glides up the banister and her hat stand bursts out of a bag as she makes herself at home at Cherry Tree Lane, the hand painted storybook house which opens out and invites you into the enchanting world created by PL Travers.

The beauty of this show is that producer and co-creator Cameron Mackintosh, who was in the audience for last night’s press night, is not afraid to introduce new scenes that add even more sparkle to what has been a family favourite for generations.

Film fans will wallow in its touching nostalgia, like the penguin in a pram which gives a nod to the much-loved Disney movie, but there are also some superb new touches.

Bert (Matt Lee, with a voice and moves that put Dick Van Dykes to shame, but an accent similar at times) and his fellow chimney sweeps fill the stage as they line up for Step In Time, a tap dancing spectacular with the feel of a scene from Riverdance, not forgetting the famous upside down tap dance.

A grey street scene revolves into a psychedelic Jolly Holiday transformation, toys and park statues come to life before your eyes, a gigantic umbrella and kites fly over stage and there's even a pantomime villain in the shape of a rival nanny from the past.

New songs from George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, most notably Practically Perfect and Anything Can Happen, sit effortlessly alongside timeless favourites like Let's Go Fly A Kite, Chim Chim Cher-ee, A Spoonful of Sugar and Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

This is a darker, more dramatic Mary Poppins from the pen of Julian Fellowes and the dancing prowess of both our leads really adds to a spellbinding show.

More magical than anything you’ve seen before with truly outstanding performances, special effects galore, sumptuous costumes and set, an incredible score and spoonfuls of showbiz sugar, Mary Poppins is an unmissable treat.

Spit spot. Get your tickets before the wind changes and she flies away; or tickets sell out - whichever is sooner.