YES, it’s back. Oh yes it is.

It’s panto time of year again – and this one will have you well and truly hooked!

The Towngate Theatre’s seasonal offering, ‘The Panto Adventures of Peter Pan’ is here from now until January.

And as regulars to the annual Christmas caper will know, audiences are in for a night of thigh-slapping, foot-tapping, barnstorming fun for all the family.

For the first time in too many to count years, the brilliant Simon Fielding, who for so long has directed, acted in and written the Towngate’s pantomime, is not bounding about on stage.

Instead, he’s taking a backseat; well, the director’s seat, to be precise.

But don’t worry, he’s not gone far – and you really feel his comedic influence in every second of the show.

Sophie Ladds returns as the evil Captain Hook and as usual, she’s a supreme treat, having the audience cheering and jeering in equal comedic measure.

Indeed, the entire cast excel; Harvey Zaffino (Peter Pan) and Antonia Luisa-Clarke (Tinkerbelle) are both impressive on their professional debuts, while Hannah Taylor (Wendy) and Michael Loftus (Wibbles) also shine.

We all know, no panto is completed without a dame- and this comes in the shape of the fantastic Ian Hallard as Mrs Smee, who brings much hilarity, including a pun-tastic, chocolate-bar themed skit.

Another highlight is the clever ‘12 days of Christmas’ sketch, which had everyone laughing.

With some brilliant choreography, special effects and routines from the Twinkle and Sparkle teams, ‘The Panto Adventures of Peter Pan’ is a fun fusion of the contemporary and the traditional- something you always get when Simon Fielding is involved.

It’s a seat-filling, rip-roaring night out to lift the spirits and don’t we all need that right now?

Book your tickets online at www.towngatetheatre.co.uk or call the Box Office on 01268 205 300.