It’s a fact!
acrobatics and plenty of slapstick humour. As this type of theatre inevitably spread across Europe, Britain quickly seized upon the idea and it was in the late 1600s that a dancer and mime artist turned theatre impresario called John Rich started the first British pantos.
In the years that followed, the original Italian stories were replaced by fairy stories or tales from books such as Robinson Crusoe. Meanwhile, in the hands of the Victorians, who realised their enormous commercial potential, pantomimes soon grew to be huge, zany productions, featuring large casts and fancy trap doors and stage effects, kickstarting a trend for ‘more is more’ that still exists in the panto world today.
Often opening on Boxing Day – hence the Christmas association – panto was a rare opportunity to go totally against the severe restraint and propriety that characterised the Victorian period. Fully embracing all things silly, they introduced witty wordplay, audience participation and the cross-dressing characters. The first pantomime Dame was played by the celebrated music hall star Dan Leno in the 1880s, whose key success – and that of the character ever since – was creating a believable female character while making sure everyone knew he was really a man. Dan’s involvement was also the start of using
celebrities
Peter Duncan (left and in character, right) is playing Dame Trott online in a panto filmed in his back garden
Drive-in versions will help keep the tradition going (oh yes they will...) in pantomime. Back then, it was performers from Music Hall but going into the Thirties and beyond this evolved into welcoming TV, radio and sports personalities to the stage.
Up and coming performers such as Frankie Howerd, Tommy Trinder and Morecambe and Wise all trod the boards in pantomime, helping draw in new
Pantos are still a hugely important part of British life, economy, culture and fun
audiences all while raising their own profile. Since then, pop stars, comedians, soap stars and reality TV personalities have flocked to be part of British panto, including Hollywood A-listers such as David Hasselhoff, Priscilla Presley and Pamela Anderson, who wrongly believed she would be “miming in a box” when she was first asked to do panto!
Not all pantos have to have celebrities though, and round the country many smaller companies and amateur groups still produce what we might think of as a traditional local panto, where you might see your milkman dressed in tights or laugh at inside jokes you’ll only get if you live locally.
Big or small, star-studded or community-made, there’s no doubt pantos are still are hugely important part of British life for our economy, our culture and just our sense of fun. Where else can all the generations laugh, sing and shout out together, enjoying the ridiculousness of the pantomime horse, the dodgy interpretations of pop songs or seeing Uncle Bob dragged onstage by the Dame? After this tricky year, a dose of panto magic, however it’s delivered, might be just what we need.