How Qdos signed up Berwick Kaler to be the Grand’s new dame in panto comeback

Putting his big boots back on: York pantomime dame Berwick Kaler, pictured here in his last Theatre Royal show, The Grand Old Dame Of York, before retiring. Now the Grand Opera House beckons. Picture: Anthony Robling

BERWICK Kaler is back, as the Grand Old Dame of York transforms into the Grand’s new dame.

Now that the Grand Opera House will be the home of his latest dame after 41 years at York Theatre Royal, both Dame Berwick and Dick Turpin will ride again from December 12 to January 10 2021.

Kaler pulled on his big boots at the Theatre Royal for the last time on February 2 2019 after announcing his retirement from Britain’s longest-running panto damehood.

Giving that retirement its P45, in favour of a re-boot, he will write and direct as well as star in Dick Turpin Rides Again, as he takes back control [to borrow a Dominic Cummings mantra]. What’s more, he will be re-uniting on stage with sidekick stooge Martin Barrass, villain David Leonard, ageless principal girl Suzy Cooper and luverly Brummie AJ Powell.

This time, the re-formed Panto Five will be on new terrain as the Grand Opera House owners, Ambassador Theatre Group, team up with Qdos Entertainment, the most powerful pantomime brand in the land.

Here Charles Hutchinson puts the questions to prolific theatre producer, director and Qdos Entertainment (Pantomimes) managing director Michael Harrison, Kaler’s fellow north easterner, who stands at number eight in The Stage’s Top 100 most influential people in theatre, no less.

Michael Harrison: managing director of Qdos Entertainment (Pantomimes), the panto powerhouse bringing Berwick Kaler’s dame out of retirement. Picture: Simon Hadley

Why bring back Berwick, Michael?

“The best things fall out of the sky and I wasn’t expecting this opportunity.

“I’m from Newcastle and I travelled all over the place to see pantomimes; first Newcastle and Sunderland, then Darlington, and then I started venturing to York and further, and I loved York Theatre Royal’s show.

“If you see all the pantos everywhere, they can become like wallpaper, but stumbling across Berwick in York was like a breath of fresh air. I’d never seen anything like it. Stepping out of the script, as he does, I just loved it.

“I never really thought there was a place for it in what I did but was more than happy to see it in Berwick’s pantos, and I did try to put some of that madness in my shows, like I have for 16 years at Newcastle Theatre Royal.”

What struck you most about Berwick’s pantos?

“I like the way he has catchphrases that you don’t have to spend three minutes introducing to the audience because they already know them.

“I like how he returns to things from previous shows, how he uses wild titles and how he has cast members returning every year.

“It’s no secret that our most successful pantos are where the stars keep returning: Allan Stewart, 20-plus years at the King’s Theatre, Edinburgh; Billy Pearce, more than 20 years at the Bradford Alhambra; Danny Adams and Clive Webb, 16 years at Newcastle Theatre Royal; Matt Slack at Birmingham Hippodrome.

“It’s true that pantomime is a celebration of local culture and that’s why Berwick had that long run at the Theatre Royal.”

The final curtain for Berwick Kaler’s dame in The Grand Old Dame Of York on February 2 2019 at York Theatre Royal has turned out to be au revoir, not adieu. Picture: Anthony Robling

How did you feel when Berwick retired?

“The day after The Grand Old Dame Of York finished, and I was very tired after directing three pantomimes and producing 30 shows that winter, I got very emotional, thinking ‘this is the end of an era’. But I was also thinking ‘why does Berwick want to retire in his early seventies, when he doesn’t have to travel to do the show, he can go home every night?’”

How did Berwick’s dame resurrection at the Grand Opera House come to fruition?

“Mark Walters, the designer who Qdos have signed up for the London Palladium and Newcastle Theatre Royal pantomimes and who used to design Berwick’s pantos in York, got in touch on January 11 to say ‘Have you heard what’s happening to the Theatre Royal panto?’ [with the news of a new creative team being put in place].

“I woke up the next morning thinking, ‘I don’t know if this is over’. ‘Why is Berwick not coming back? One year off, now he should come back refreshed.

“I wrote to Berwick and said ‘you don’t know who I am, but I put on pantomimes and lots of other shows and I’m a massive fan of your pantos. If I can get the Grand Opera House, would you do it? Would you talk?’.”

What happened next?

“Berwick’s agent contacted me the following day and it developed very quickly from there.

“I just felt that Berwick’s panto was a little bit of pantomime history that should continue.

“Qdos produce all the other Ambassador Theatre Group pantomimes, and I was aware that Three Bears Productions’ contract was not being renewed. Normally it’s about ‘big’ casting, but this was different. There was Berwick and all his regulars.

“It happened quickly with Berwick and then we approached the other four [Barrass, Leonard, Cooper and Powell], and there just seemed to be a passion to make it happen.”

Re-uniting: villain David Leonard and perennial principal girl Suzy Cooper, pictured here in Sleeping Beauty at York Theatre Royal, will be back on stage with Berwick Kaler from December 12

Will you want more of “the same old rubbish” as Berwick calls it, or will you be seeking fresh elements to appeal to the regular Grand Opera House panto audience, who like plot, plenty for children to enjoy and popular songs?

“We want to make it a York pantomime. We have to grasp all the best bits that have really worked for Berwick, and we also have to work out what’s the best recipe for this opportunity to move forward in a different way.

“I remember the advice of a member of the audience in Newcastle, who said: ‘Don’t ever change it, but keep surprising me’, and that’s what we have to discover each time; how to do that.

“But Berwick’s panto format is very unique, and I feel that while he wants to do it, and they all want to do it, and there’s an audience that wants him to do it, then let’s continue doing it.

“What I do know is that more people still saw David, Martin, Suzy and AJ in Sleeping Beauty than went to Snow White at the Opera House, by a considerable margin, and by adding Berwick to the mix again, it will be interesting to be in York next winter.”

Does the feisty side of Berwick, such as his “I’m b****y furious” outburst at the finale to the last night of Sleeping Beauty, worry you?

“Anybody that is passionate about what they do can have a reputation for being demanding, but that goes with the territory.

“You expect anyone with a mind like that is going to challenge, always wanting things to be better. I’m sure he only does it with the audience in mind. It’s just about doing the best job for them.”

The new pantomime team at York Theatre Royal: associate director Juliet Forster, who will direct Cinderella, executive director Tom Bird and Evolution Productions producer Paul Hendy

Will there be a rivalry with the York Theatre Royal panto, now to be co-produced with Evolution Productions’ Paul Hendy and Emily Wood, presenting Cinderella for 2020-2021?

“I know Paul and Emily well. They’ve sat in my house. We might all be panto producers but there’s no rivalry there, though I’d love to know why a repertory theatre is teaming up with a pantomime company.

“Picking the Theatre Royal cast now, it will have to be star-driven, otherwise who will go? But Paul is a very clever panto man, so he won’t be going into it to get it wrong.

“Besides, there are more important things going on in the world than a panto ‘rivalry. It’s really not worth falling out when it’s only four of five weeks a year.”

Could the two theatres potentially be swapping their pantomime audiences?

“If there were 31,000 who saw Sleeping Beauty without Berwick – and there’s no surprise that ticket sales fell when someone who’s an institution isn’t there on stage anymore – then there’ll be those 31,000 here. I think there’s no reason why we won’t have 40,000 people coming.

“It would be great to keep some of the regular Grand Opera House panto audience too, if they’ve never experienced a Berwick Kaler pantomime. But I also understand those who want something more traditional, though I think the York audience is still stronger for a Berwick Kaler pantomime than a normal storyline-driven, fairy-tale panto.

“In year one, people might go and see both.”

Will you be looking to inject young talent into the Grand Opera House pantomime, alongside the established team?

“I’m always mindful of who are the pantomime stars of tomorrow because we’re not breeding them as we once were, like when they used to do a Blackpool summer season or a sitcom.

“Today’s comedy stars do Radio 2 and Radio 4 shows and bypass panto, so we have to find the new stars through other ways.”

Valentine’s Day engagement: Berwick Kaler will meet the box-office queues at the Grand Opera House panto ticket launch on February 14

Is there a chance that Mark Walters might design the Grand Opera House show, now that the ex-York Theatre Royal panto designer has signed to the Qdos stable?

“I’m talking to Mark about it now. If it wasn’t for Mark, I wouldn’t have put that request in to Berwick to play dame again.

“We’ve met already about Humpty Dumpty for Newcastle Theatre Royal…and we’ll discuss Dick Turpin Rides Again too.”

As a hugely successful pantomime producer and director yourself, with the London Palladium and Newcastle Theatre Royal to your name, what makes a good panto?

“Two things, I would say: comedy and magic. Not magic tricks, but that sense of wonderment that you can’t put your finger on.

“The best pantomimes are the funniest ones. We can get terribly criticised for not having as much plot as we could, but the best received shows have always been more focused on comedy, set pieces and routines.

“The plot has to be there but the show must be funny and it has to have a wow factor about it.”

Qdos Entertainment present Berwick Kaler in Dick Turpin Rides Again at the Grand Opera House, York, from December 12 to January 10 2021. Dame Berwick and his co-stars will launch ticket sales on February 14 from 10am at the box office. Box office: 0844 871 3024 or at atgtickets.com/york.

BERWICK’S BACK! York’s grand old dame to ride again but you won’t believe where!

Berwick’s back: dame for a laugh once more

YORK’S grand old dame, Berwick Kaler, is back in panto. Oh yes, he is.

At York Theatre Royal, his “beloved home” for 41 years? Oh, no he isn’t.

Dame Berwick is switching to the other side, the Grand Opera House, to become the Grand’s old dame. What’s more, he will be bringing the rest of the Not Famous But Famous In York Five along for the ride in Dick Turpin Rides Again: villain David Leonard; sidekick stooge Martin Barrass; ageless principal girl Suzy Cooper and luverly Brummie A J Powell.

Tickets for the December 12 to January 10 run will go on general sale on February 14, Valentine’s Day, when fans can have a love-in with Dame Berwick in the box office, when he sells the first tickets at 10am.

 A delighted Kaler says: “Qdos Entertainment have come to the rescue of the most lauded pantomime in the country, having found us a new home at the Grand Opera House in our beloved City of York.

“To make this a success we need you – the most articulate and loyal audience in the entire country. We can go forth with a management that believes we have enhanced the reputation of a local pantomime that has caught the imagination of young and old, from all walks of life.”

Qdos Entertainment’s managing director Michael Harrison enthuses: “We are absolutely delighted to be embarking on an all-new pantomime partnership with our colleagues at the Ambassador Theatre Group, Grand Opera House and, of course, Berwick and the gang.

“Berwick is an undeniable master in the world of pantomime, with his own inimitable style and approach and we are delighted to be working closely with him and the cast to bring back the magic for which they are best known.”

Kaler, 73, retired from playing the Theatre Royal’s dame after 40 years last February, but has signed a three-year contract with Qdos Entertainment, the pantomime powerhouse of British theatre, who are taking over the Grand Opera House panto from Three Bears Productions from Winter 2020.

Dame Berwick will write and direct the show, as well as pulling on his trademark big boots, unruly wig and spectacular frocks again, after regretting his decision to retire, breaking his run as Britain’s longest-running dame, from the moment he announced it.

Fully recovered from his double heart bypass in the summer of 2018, It was a sentiment he repeated regularly, not least on the last night of The Grand Old Dame Of York on February 2 last year, saying he “would be back like a shot” if asked.

Now the veteran dame does return, but across the city, where he has chosen Dick Turpin Rides Again for his first Grand Opera House pantomime, revisiting a show that brought him his highest ever audience figures at the Theatre Royal: 54,000 for Dick Turpin in 2008-2009.

He last appeared on the Opera House stage as fey drag artist Captain Terri Dennis in Peter Nichols’ Privates On Parade in 1996.

Kaler made an emotional, provocative speech at the finale to last Saturday’s final night of Sleeping Beauty, the troubled Theatre Royal pantomime he had written and co-directed this winter, but whose progress was jolted by executive director Tom Bird’s confirmation, with a fortnight still to run, that Dame Berwick would not be back, as writer or director, let alone as dame.

BERWICKXIT: Berwick Kaler playing the dame in his last York Theatre Royal pantomime, The Grand Old Dame Of York, last winter. Picture: Anthony Robling

Suzy Cooper and Kaler in The Press splash had called for the dame to return, David Leonard later backed that campaign, while Martin Barrass addressed the audience at each show post-announcement to say “this cast and this band” would not be returning. A public petition was launched too.

“I’m b****y furious,” said the dame, back on his old stamping ground, in a highly charged Saturday atmosphere, full of cheers for Kaler and boos for new panto villain Bird.

Kaler could not reveal “the truth”, but said Bird – or “one man” as he called him throughout without naming him once – was “wrong” in his decision to move on to a new creative team when the Theatre Royal pantomime “didn’t need fixing”.

“I’ll give them three days,” he said in a cryptic ultimatum that set tongues wagging that Kaler must have something up his sleeve, while Barrass rubbed his hands when reading out  a letter in the shout-outs that suggested the Panto Five should move to “the Grand”.

Those three days passed, but now Dame Berwick rises again, linking up with Qdos Entertainment, whose production  facilities are based in Scarborough and Beverley, 100,000 costumes et al. Billed as “the world’s biggest pantomime producer”, with 37 years behind them, they present such big-hitting pantos as the London Palladium and Newcastle Theatre Royal shows, as well as, closer to York, Hull New Theatre.

Welcoming the new partnership of Qdos and the Kaler crew, Grand Opera House theatre director Rachel Crocombe-Lane says: “Qdos bring both world-class expertise and also a Yorkshire heart, being based in Scarborough; the perfect combination together with this talented cast.

“As a venue team, pantomime is our favourite time of year because of the friendship with the company and also the joy and devotion of our audience. We are proud of these new partnerships, excited for the future of our pantomime and will be ready altogether to really blow your Christmas socks off!’

Qdos Entertainment chairman, Nick Thomas, from Scarborough, is excited too. “I am thrilled to welcome Berwick, a true Yorkshire theatre legend, to the Qdos family. Qdos Entertainment has had a long association with Yorkshire, it is my home county, and with our production and wardrobe teams based in Scarborough and Beverley, forming this new relationship with Berwick and the Grand Opera House is especially exciting.”

Meanwhile, York Theatre Royal will be launching its 2020-2021 pantomime on Monday at high noon. Rather than declaring a pantomime civil war in York, executive director Bird says: “We wish the Grand Opera House the very best of luck. As we’ve always said, we’ll be announcing our new pantomime on Monday”.

On Tuesday this week, Bird told a City of York Council meeting that no performance of Sleeping Beauty had sold out, save for the traditional last night pandemonium, compounding a decline in attendances that had started 11 years ago.

He said the Theatre Royal would “build a new pantomime for the city that to some extent doesn’t rely on you having been to the pantomime for 30 years in order to get it”.

“I know how much affection there is for our pantomime in the city. What’s prompted us to make this change is that that affection isn’t necessarily translating into popularity,” he added. “It’s with a very heavy heart that we make changes but it’s not something we can leave.”

Tickets for Dick Turpin Rides Again will be on general sale from February 14 on 0844 871 3024, at atgtickets.com/york and in person from the Cumberland Street theatre’s box office. ATG Theatre Card holders can buy from February 11.

“I don’t want to be political or anything,” says Dame Berwick as he takes to the stage again at York Theatre Royal. Who did he give the Bird last night?

Berwick Kaler, playing the dame in his last York Theatre Royal pantomime, The Grand Old Dame Of York, last winter. Picture: Anthony Robling

IT ended, as it only could, with the dame’s return to the stage. In civvies, this final time, but not in civil mood as he wouldn’t let it rest on the final night of Sleeping Beauty.

More like civil war. Us and them. Pantomime’s version of Brexit, except with a different result, the majority, if not all, in the house, wanting them to remain, not leave, when “one man” and “the board” have decided it is time to move on. Get panto done, differently, with a new 2020 vision.

Dame Berwick didn’t name the “one man” who went to mow them down, but he was referring to York Theatre Royal executive director Tom Bird, newly cast as the panto villain. “I’ll give them three days” [to change their minds], the grand dame vowed in a tone harking back to the Scargill and Red Robbo days of union versus management.

“I don’t want to do him any harm…but he’s wrong”, said Mr Kaler, surrounded by “the family”, the rest of the Panto Five, Martin, Suzy, David and AJ, their fellow cast members and the crew, buoyed at each unscripted but barbed line by an adoring home crowd, who cheered and booed his rallying speech like they had throughout the show.

He even kissed the wall to express how much he loved this theatre, getting down on his knees at one point too, arms outstretched, in appreciation of his loyal subjects.

“A house does not make a home. A family does,” read one letter read out earlier by the panto Queen, Martin Barrass, in his Bile Beans can regalia in the shout-outs. “Please, Mr Bird, reconsider. Save our panto,” pleaded a second, and there were plenty more.

“Yah boo to York Theatre Royal. We won’t be back,” hissed one, read by the luverly Brummie AJ Powell.

Emotions were running high, as they had been for Martin Barrass, breaking down theatre’s fourth wall to speak from the heart at every performance since news broke a fortnight ago that Berwick Kaler, already retired from playing the dame, would not be asked to co-direct or write the 2020 show. “This cast and this band” would not be back either, said Barrass. “A decision that is nothing to do with us. If it was, we would be back each year until we drop.”

Martin Barrass in his role as Queen Ariadne in Sleeping Beauty at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Anthony Robling

Back to Dame Berwick, who found himself feeling “more emotional” now, in this house of York winter of discontent, than in his valedictory speech at The Grand Old Dame Of York last February. Not for himself, he said, but for all those on stage with him who had given so many years – “some for half their lives” – to the Theatre Royal.

“I’ve been told I can’t tell you the truth, so I can’t say the truth…but I want to because…I’m b****y furious,” he said. “I don’t want to be political or anything…but someone tell the management that this wonderful, wonderful theatre has been a repertory theatre for 275 years.

“It’s a repertory theatre and that means we put on our own shows for the local population. It’s York’s theatre.”

After reading a letter of support sent that morning to “Berwick Kaler, Acomb”, he resumed: “I just can’t understand that someone can do this to something that does not need fixing…

…We have made money for this theatre for years. How can one man do this to us? I don’t understand it.”

“Anyway, they’ve got three days,” he repeated, before leading company and audience through “We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when, but I know we’ll meet again some sunny day.”

The final curtain fell, as it always must, but where and when might that sunny day reunion take place? What will happen to Dame Berwick’s three-day deadline? Will he rise again on the third day, and if so, to say or do what amid this collateral dame-age? Watch this space, as newspapers are wont to say.

As for that “one man”, Tom Bird, he and the York Theatre Royal management will announce next winter’s show on February 3. The end and the new beginning all in one.