BTG's Panto Editor Simon Sladen spoke to Allan Stewart, who marks an extraordinary milestone of 50 years in pantomime.

Allan reflected on his early start as a teenage club performer, his unexpected first role as Buttons without ever having seen a panto and the lessons learned from mentors such as Jack Radcliffe and producer Paul Elliott. He shared stories from working alongside stars including Les Dawson, Danny La Rue and Frank Bruno and offered insight into the craft of comedy and the traditions that make pantomime unique.

Simon and Allan also discussed his long-standing partnership with Andy Gray and Grant Stott, the enduring appeal of Edinburgh's Kings Theatre and how pantomime has evolved from single microphones to spectacular, high-tech productions.

Allan also considered the sense of family that develops within a company and why panto remains such an important introduction to theatre for audiences of all ages.

Jack and the Beanstalk continues at Edinburgh Festival Theatre until 11 January 2026.

(Photo of Allan Stewart as Auntie May in Jack and the Beanstalk (c) Douglas Robertson)

The Big Tiny Productions Ltd, founded in 2019 by Will Cousins and Ben Richards, is producing four shows in the North West for Christmas 2025, three of which are pantos written by Ben and designed by Will.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to them both, with a few contributions from their dog, Toby, about the company and this year's shows, as well as about the changing nature of panto, the balance between tradition and innovation (it's like a lasagne…), choosing panto stories, Northern v Southern humour, funding spectacular shows in small venues and Ben's panto-related PhD, amongst other things.

The Big Tiny's shows for Christmas 2025 are Rumpelstiltskin at Contact in Manchester from 9 to 31 December 2025, The Pied Piper of Hamelin at The Met in Bury from 6 to 28 December, Hansel and Gretel at Millgate Arts Centre in Saddleworth from 6 December to 3 January and Mrs Claus Saves Christmas at Bolton Octagon from 10 to 24 December.

The set, prop and costume exchange service that Ben and Will mention in the interview is Pursued By Bear.

(Photo of Will Cousins & Ben Richards, credit Howard Barlow)

The British Theatre Consortium, headed by playwrights Dan Rebellato and David Edgar, has followed up its reports on the state of the British theatre repertoire in 2013 and 2014 with a study into how things have changed in the industry between 2019, the year before the COVID lockdowns began, and 2023.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Dan Rebellato about the findings of the report, what it tells us about the problems, vulnerabilities and stability of British theatre over those four years and how it was changed by the pandemic.

The report British Theatre Before & After Covid was published on 26 November 2025 by the British Theatre Consortium based on the work of a research team led by Catherine Love-Smith. The full 143-page report can be read at or downloaded from the BTC web site.

David Ireland is an Irish playwright with a reputation for writing hard-hitting drama such as The Fifth Step, Ulster American and Cypress Avenue, but director Max Elton is reviving a very different play by him, Most Favoured, which can be seen at Soho Theatre in London over the Christmas period.

BTG David Chadderton spoke to David about the play and his influences as a writer, as well as how his love of Shakespeare began in a Blackpool guest house at the age of 9 and why he wants to write romantic comedies and feels he couldn't face watching some of his earlier plays now.

Most Favoured, starring Lauren Lyle and Alexander Arnold, will run at Soho Theatre in London from 11 December 2025 to 24 January 2026.

(David Ireland photo credit Tommy Ga-Ken Wan)

Buzz Goodbody was the first female director at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford where she was instrumental in setting up the venue The Other Place.

She died just 50 years ago at the age of 28, and her nephew, Adam Goodbody, has created a new theatre company, Buzz Studios, in her honour. The company's first production is Petty Men at London's Arcola Theatre.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Adam and his co-writer and fellow performer, John Chisham about the play and its creation, adapting Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to create a modern piece, the importance of theatre and Shakespeare education and of course the legacy of Adam's aunt, Buzz Goodbody.

Petty Men runs at the Arcola Theatre in London from 19 November to 20 December 2025.

(Petty Men image of John Chisham and Adam Goodbody, photography by Tom Dixon.)

Steve Marmion is currently in his second season as Chief Executive and Director of Programming for Watford Palace Theatre, but he also ran Soho Theatre in London for eight years and founded PantoCo Ltd.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Steve about the upcoming panto production of Jack and the Beanstalk with the voice of Stephen Fry as the Giant, but he also spoke at some length about the value of panto in general, the challenges of running and programming theatres for diverse communities, why theatres need to conquer TIkTok and how his social media reels resemble Sunday Night at the London Palladium.

Jack and the Beanstalk will run at Watford Palace Theatre from 29 November 2025 to 4 January 2026. Steve also mentioned Werewolf, which will run at the same theatre from 22 November to 24 December 2025, and The Mesmerist, running from 2 to 21 March 2026.

Rebecca Biscuit and Louise Mothersole, as Sh!t Theatre, have been making theatre together for fifteen years.

They will be spending the 2025 Christmas season at London's Southbank Centre with their new show Evita Too, set in the presidency of Argentina, like the other Evita, but they are looking at the perhaps more interesting story of Juan Perón's second wife, Isabel, who became president after his death.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Rebecca and Louise about their discovery of the story of "gogo-dancer-turned-president" Isabel, how they turned this into a show and their research in Argentina and Spain, as well as how the company was originally formed and whether there are any regrets about its name.

Evita Too from Sh!t Theatre will be performed in the Purcell Room at London's Southbank Centre from 9 to 31 December 2025.

Border Crossings, a UK-based theatre company that collaborates with artists from around the world, is celebrating its 30th anniversary, formed in 1995 by Artistic Director Michael Walling.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Michael about the history, methodology and extensive catalogue of work of the company over three decades and what he views as the increasing urgency of bringing together people from different nationalities, cultures and backgrounds through theatre.

David and Michael both teach on the online BA in Theatre Studies from UK drama school Rose Bruford College (David was in its first intake of students in 1996, and Michael one of his tutors), which is also celebrating its 30th anniversary. They talk about the innovative and transformative nature of the course, pay tribute to its late founder, Tony Hozier, and lament its recent cancellation.

Jessica Norman is a playwright and screenwriter whose play This Little Earth, which was long-listed for the Women's Prize for Playwriting, will debut at London's Arcola Theatre this autumn.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Jessica a couple of days before the production opened about the play and its development, conspiracy theories and those who believe them and about writing in general.

This Little Earth runs at the Arcola Theatre in London from 22 October to 15 November 2025.

A post-show discussion with Jessica and journalist and author Gabriel Gatehouse, Emeritus Professor of Anomalistic Psychology Chris French and CEO of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust Camilla Nichol will take place on Thursday 30 October.

The Antarctic Climate Café, allowing people to come and talk about the climate crisis, will be before the show on Thursday 13 November.

Rebecca Atkinson-Lord was Director of Theatre at London's Ovalhouse (now Brixton House) until 2016, but has since moved to the island of Mull in the Scottish Hebrides as Chief Executive and Artistic Director of An Tobar and Mull Theatre.

BTG Editor David Chadderton spoke to Rebecca while she was in rehearsals for a stage adaptation of Sarah Moss's novel Night Waking, adapted by Shireen Mula. She explained about the play and the process of adapting and rehearsing it, as well as the challenges of touring to rural venues and to theatres where some of your audience comes by boat and what she misses about working in London.

Night Waking opens at Mull Theatre on 28 and 29 September 2025 before touring to Edinburgh, Stirling, Greenock, Wick, Inverness, Ullapool, Strathcarron, Castle Douglas, Dumfies, Fife, Paisley, Dunoon, Lochgilphead, Oban, Iona and back to Mull, finishing on 31 October.