It's panto time!

It hardly seems five minutes since last year’s round of festive frolics in our theatres.

Not that I’m complaining. I rather liked Salisbury Playhouse’s last effort.

I can normally take or leave pantomime.

Like most parents, I’m more interested in my child’s enjoyment than enjoying it myself.

Past productions at the Playhouse haven’t always been ones I’ve relished, but I found myself getting really into last year’s show.

Part of that was down to Keiran Buckeridge as the dame – he was fabulous – and part was down to the simple, traditional feel of it.

A lot of venues these days have health and safety rules that prevent you throwing sweets to the children (you could have someone’s eye out with that), or attempt to be flashy and different or to draw in the audiences with the lure of a ‘top star’, who may or may not be any good.

I don’t think you really need all that with panto. Kids adore interaction. They love being called up to the stage and joining in singing competitions - or jumping up to catch a dangerously speedy toffee.

A few years back I took my boy to a production of Jack and the Beanstalk in Poole.

It had someone in it who once appeared in a 1970s or 80s US TV show, but the children had no idea who he was, and really couldn’t have cared less.

What did impress them was that several cast members were armed with water pistols and they – and their parents – got a soaking.

To a small child, that’s hilarious.

You may not relish being soaked, but all you really want from a panto is for the kids to be happy and having a whale of a time, so you’re willing to grin and bear it.

But that was the other thing that impressed me about the Playhouse show last year - it managed to be funny and entertaining for the adults as well. It was like being a kid again for a couple of hours on a Saturday afternoon.

Although, during the interval we ran into a former Journal colleague who’d dragged her American son-in-law along because “you can’t come to England for Christmas and not see a pantomime”.

He looked utterly befuddled. I suppose even the most talented of casts have limits.

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