ALL the staple panto ingredients are present and correct in this hugely enjoyable production . . . (please forgive me) oh yes they are!

Corny jokes, audience participation, double entendres for the mums and dads and, best of all, lots of laughs.

That it is such fun, is largely due to its perfectly cast star turn, Brian Conley.

His version of Cinders' pal Buttons reminded me of a chirpy, Cockney Norman Wisdom -- but don't let that put you off.

Conley manages to pull off the difficult trick of appealing to the five-year-olds and their parents and grandparents, mainly thanks to his charm and natural rapport with the audience.

He's well supported by Peter Robbins and Nigel Ellacott as the Ugly Sisters (Whitney and Britney).

The pair are the creme de la creme of panto dames -- they have made the parts their own in the past 20 odd years -- and it is evident that they both enjoy and are very good at teetering about on ridiculously high platform shoes, spitting out risque one-liners in some of the most lavish and ingenious costumes you will have seen in a long time.

As ever for this type of show, I relied on my six-year-old son's reaction to gauge its success -- and it was a pleasure to watch him laugh for as long and as loudly as he did.

As you'd expect, Prince Charming captures Cinders' heart, the nasty sisters get their comeuppance and the Fairy Godmother gets to say 'You SHALL go to the ball'.

In his final address to the audience (after an hilarious singalong with five brave young children) Conley urged: "If you liked the show, tell someone you know. That is better than any poster or advert."

Here goes then, Brian. Dear readers, if it's good family fun you're after, do yourself a favour and catch this before it ends its run on January 18.