The stars of this year's pantomime at the Theatre Royal in Newcastle were all on fine form on Monday following last-minute rehearsals ahead of opening night.
Joe McElderry is again joining the theatre's regular panto team led by Danny Adams and Clive Webb and is all set for his role of Fairy Godfather in Cinderella which first has a dress rehearsal run-through - to a full house - before its official launch on Tuesday. The singer-songwriter is making a comeback for a second season, following last year's success in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, so he knows what to expect at the hands of madcap duo Clive and Danny who this year celebrate their remarkable 17th year in Theatre Royal panto.
"He's got a lot of singing!" says Danny, during a brief break in rehearsals, and the trio's on-stage chemistry will be brought to the fore again this year: "I think last year it worked so well", he says, adding that as soon as they got together they knew that would be the case. So audiences will be in for another treat.
