The stage is set with the mobile goose house nestling among the ‘scrim’

Fairy Aurora (Shirley Wellen) opens the show …

… and we soon meet her nemesis, Grump the Troll (Will Nash)

We move to Mother Goose’s Goosery, as indicated by the cardboard sign.

Here we find Mother Goose (Rufus Kendall), his daughter Freya (Summer Wareham) and Heidi the Goose (Lisa Osborn-Lea) along with a chorus of mini-geese

We are introduced to Heidi …

… the only goose in the world who can curtsey!

The Baron is coming! Best move home until he goes!!

Jonathan Neil as postie delivers good news and bad.

Baron von Rumpensmakka (Thomas Hiller) reads a letter from his recently-deceased brother, watched by his side-kick Gonk (Kerri Nash). He’s been asked to look after his brother’s son Sven.

Sven (Eryn Johnson) arrives. But where is the Goose family?

He introduces himself to Freya and Mother Goose.

The Baron and Gonk arrive to demand the rent – it’s £50.

The Baron is after Freya if he can’t get either Heidi the goose or the rent.

Sven says he’ll pay the rent for them, but finds he only has £49!

Fairy Aurora arrives to save the day …

… she sprinkles some magic powder – which allows Heidi to lay golden eggs to pay the rent.

Heidi approaches the Baron menacingly …

… but only to pluck a golden egg from his jacket and throw it to Mother Goose.

Grump plots how he can get his hands on Heidi, and her golden eggs.

First, by magic, he makes Freya and Sven quarrel.

Meanwhile Mother Goose gives Heidi some meatballs to eat. Don’t ask why – this is panto!

The Baron & Gonk plot how to grab Heidi. Gonk has a cunning plan – he will dress up as a lady goose and seduce her.

The scene changes.

Due to their newly-found immense wealth, Mother Goose decides to redecorate the house – and out comes the pasting table. This is panto, so you know what will happen next …

… and it does. The Baron’s nephew Sven gets pasted!

… and has water poured over him.

… and of course the rest of the ‘water’ has to go over the front row of the audience. Never sit in the front row at a panto!

.The Baron arrives to solicit Mother Goose …

… and Gonk to solicit Heidi – with a plan to lasso her and take her away.

But the plan misfires when Heidi lassos Gonk instead.

As a parting shot, the Baron tells Mother Goose how ugly she is, and she ends the scene distraught.

This gives Grump the chance to try his own cunning plan. He can make her beautiful at his ‘Bog of Beauty’ – if she will sign over Heidi to him.

And so the Bog of Beauty is set up …

…and a party of small and medium-sized trolls prepares to enter through the auditorium

Mother Goose is tempted to sign away Heidi to Grump in return for being made ‘beautiful’ in the Bog of Beauty

Heidi arrives on the scene to complain.

There is a bit of a scene and Mother Goose ends up falling into the Bog …

… and is transformed into Dolly Parton – and the Baron is smitten.

But meanwhile Fairy Aurora is concerned for the safety of Heidi, and insists she leaves the goosery.

She tells Heidi to fly away to the safety of the Palace of Light on the top of High Jump, the tallest of the Devil’s Jumps – and we see her transit the back of the stage.

Mother Goose tells the audience it’s now time for a tea break – and the scene-shifters move on to set up for Act 2.

A hot-air balloon is conveniently found.

Everyone sings ‘Up, Up and Away’ …

…before our intrepid trio get into the basket in pursuit …

… and walk it offstage.

Grump tells them they can follow the balloon – on inflatable ducks!

… and so they do.

Aurora warns us that the balloon has crash-landed in the Devil’s Punchbowl.

In the Palace of Light a guard of snowmen is assembling.

Mother Goose is sentenced to freeze to death for failing to look after Heidi, but is reprieved by Heidi’s intervention.

The band: Jo Levy (piano), Jo Smith (electric bass) and Zak White (percussion)