By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK? ***1/2

WHEN? Sunday 14 December (matinee), runs through 4 January 2026

This pantomime penned by the genius that is Andrew Pollard offers an ‘adults only’ option and we’re clearly at the wrong showing but there’s so much potential here that we can’t wait to return.

• Read on for reasons including how author Pollard continues to show what 1 can achieve with a heart bigger than a budget

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK‘s Victoria Scone (Sleeping Beauty, Harold Pinter Theatre) stars as Dame Trott and the play on Chappell Roan to set up the location of the Pink Coney Club ice cream parlour under-threat from an Islington giant raising taxes is just perfect.

Star of the show for us, however, is Pavanveer Sagoo as non-bivanary bovine influencer Pat the cow and while Sweet Cow Of Mine to the tune of Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline is fun here we can only imagine the hilarity of the adults version for their ‘milking’ at ’70 sucks a second’.

We’ve loved Pollard’s Greenwich Theatre pantos of old (The Queen Of Hearts) and while that venue’s pantomimes have rather lost their mojo of late since his departure Pollard continues to show what 1 can achieve with a heart bigger than a budget.

Pantomimes were the 1st regular theatre we ever attended growing up near Aldershot, Hampshire in the 80s and we’ll never tire of hearing songs like Make Your Own Kind Of Music by Mamas and The Papas in this, or any context, because pantomime and theatre can offer escape to ‘sing your own special song’ when things are bleak growing up.

If you can get a ticket to the adult version of this production, it features guest stars including Georgina Onuorah (Shucked!, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), Danielle Steers (Hot Mess: A New Musical, Southwark Playhouse) and River Medway (Steps’ musical Here And Now on UK tour).

Scone (main picture) makes for an engaging star however and we can imagine her audience banter becoming more to our taste at the adult version although she is also very funny although restrained in this Sunday lunchtime incarnation full of families.

We very much enjoyed her continually forgetting the name of giant henchman Joseph Lukehurst and mistaking him as Lava Lamp rather than Nightshade certainly tickled our ribs in a family-friendly way.

Her attempt to ‘butter him up’ with actual stage butter was hilarious here and doubtless fruitier in the version clearly better suited to our (lack of!) taste.

Acrobatic Elliott Baker-Costello as Jack is good value and there’s so many current cultural references here lost by the Greenwich pantomime to ‘rizz’ and K-Pop Demon Hunters for example that it’s impossible not to feel seen if you’ve been paying attention during 2025.

Pantomimes represent a British tradition where dragging up, celebrating – and ribbing – older people and sparking a saucy titter are qualities to be prized and this Islington pantomime we mentioned in the same breath as the epic Palladium panto last year is already proving itself as the little train that could – and does.

• Main pictures via Facebook courtesy King’s Head Theatre Tickets
• Have you seen a King’s Head Theatre show before and what did you think of this 1? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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