Dick Whittington launched in style!

On Saturday 14 September we launched our traditional family pantomime, Dick Whittington, with the help of Dame Dolly Dumpling.
 
Dame Dolly performed a comic baking scene – interrupted by a pesky rat (puppet) – in The Brooks Shopping centre before walking up the High Street to pose for photos with shoppers out enjoying their day who were given the chance to win four tickets to the panto by posting their selfies online.

Dame Dolly Dumpling will be familiar to many in the city, as Dick Whittington will be actor Julian Eardley's tenth year as our pantomime dame. Julian has a wealth of acting experience, performing in theatre productions around the world including with Vienna’s English Theatre and starring in a BBC Radio 4 sitcom with comic star, June Whitfield.

This year Julian will once again be joined by Ed Thorpe, who plays the panto’s lead, Dick Whittington. The pair first starred together in our 2017 panto, Peter Pan – Ed’s first ever panto and that earned him a nomination in the Great British Pantomime Awards for Best Songsheet performance. Ed played the character of Wally in last year’s Beauty and the Beast.

Dick Whittington tells the story of a man who seeks his fortune in a London tormented by Revolting Rodents led by the sinister King Rat – the role of which is played by Kris Milnes, or Bouffon in last year’s panto, Beauty and the Beast. 

They will be joined by Libby Gores as Fairy Bow Bells, Joanna Brown as Alice Fitzwarren and Jon Bonner as the Alderman, Captain and Sultan.

As well as Julian, Ed and Kris making a return to the theatre this year, Dick Whittington is being brought to the stage by the same creative team behind last year’s hugely successful Beauty and the Beast – writer and director James Barry and composer Simon Slater – who this year were nominated for the Great British Pantomime Awards’ Musical Achievement Award for their original musical score for last year’s panto.

The professional actors will be joined by a supporting cast of local young performers.  Thanks to The Brooks Shopping centre for sponsoring our pantomime.

Dick Whittington will be at Theatre Royal Winchester from Saturday 30 November 2019 – Sunday 5 January 2020.