AN all-star line-up of entertainment greats have taken to the stage at the Alhambra Theatre for Bradford's annual pantomime over the decades.
The likes of Tommy Cooper and Ken Dodd have shouted 'He's Behind You' or 'Oh No, he Isn't' on stage since the first Bradford panto in 1930.
But with no panto possible in Bradford this Christmas due to the pandemic, who are the legends of the city's pantomime?
BILLY PEARCE
When you think of the Bradford panto, you think of Billy Pearce.
The Leeds-born comedian, 69, has taken centre stage at the Alhambra Theatre for 21 years of pantomimes, making his debut in 1993 in Cinderella alongside Paul Nicholas.
But due to the the pandemic, the Bradford panto has been postponed this Christmas.
Billy will instead by back for Sleeping Beauty at the Alhambra from Saturday, December 11, 2021, to Sunday, January 16, 2022.
On his first panto, Billy said: “I was Simple Simon, they left all the clowning around to me so I just got on with it,” he says. “I’ve been coming back ever since...”
CANNON & BALL
The comedy duo appeared in four different years of the Bradford pantomime; 1974, 1980, 1986 and 2000.
They performed in Bradford in Jack and the Beanstalk twice, Babes in the Wood and Aladdin.
A bearded Tommy Cannon and thumb-sucking Bobby Ball (on his 43rd birthday in January, 1987) received a giant Pudsey Bear on behalf of Barnados from Bob and Anne Waine when the comedy duo appeared in that year’s Alhambra panto.
Bobby Ball, who died in October, said he found God while performing at the 1986 Bradford panto.
He said he was drinking up to a bottle-and-a-half of whisky a day and had a string of affairs, even becoming involved in sex orgies.
But all that changed when he was playing in pantomime at the Alhambra Theatre and met the theatre's chaplain, Max Wigley, who set him on a different path following a chance conversation.
DAME BARBARA WINDSOR
The actress, famous for her roles in the Carry On films and EastEnders performed in one year of the Bradford panto.
She topped the bill in Aladdin in 1976, in a cast which included Freddie "Parrot Face" Davies and It Ain't Half Mum star Michael Bates.
But it wasn't Dame Barbara's only stint on stage in Bradford. She appeared at the Alhambra theatre in a production of Guys and Dolls in the 1990s.
Dame Barbara, who died aged 83 earlier this month, was presented with a Lifetime Achievement award from Bradford International Film Festival in 2012.
CHRISTOPHER BIGGINS
Affectionately known as Biggins, the veteran comedy actor, who appeared in sitcoms including Porridge, has appeared in two years of Bradford pantos 30 years apart.
He took to the Alhambra stage in 1988 alongside The Krankies and Dooby Duck in Dick Whittington.
Biggins returned to Bradford 30 years later when he appeared in the 2018 production of Aladdin alongside Billy Pearce and Simon Webbe from the boyband Blue.
PAUL CHUCKLE/CHUCKLE BROTHERS
Paul and Barry Chuckle, the stars of kids' TV favourite Chucklevision made two appearances in the panto in 1972's Aladdin and Dick Whittington in 1999.
After Barry died in 2018, Paul went solo and returned to the Alhambra last year for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs alongside Billy Pearce and Faye Tozer from Steps.
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