Chris Jarvis: Cinderella is "most feel-good panto" ever

Following a tough year, the popular actor and presenter hopes the show will bring “escapism and joy” to the audience.

“I think this year Christmas needs to sparkle just a little bit more than usual.”

He said: “Panto needs to be just that little bit funnier, the music needs to be a bit more joyful, a bit more party, and that’s what we’re going for.

“It’s funny all the way through and the villains are mischievous rather than evil.

“Instead of a villain we’ve got two petty criminals, two kleptomaniacs, stupid ugly sisters, who are so ridiculous.

"It’s about being uplifting and imparting good humour, a trip to somewhere ridiculous that isn’t as ridiculous as what we’ve experienced this year in politics or anywhere else.”

The show will also solve the mystery as to why Chris’ character, Buttons, is always dressed as a bellboy, despite the show not being set in a hotel.

The show features, besides the fantastic costumes, cast and soundtrack, an ambitious set. It is the biggest set that has ever been used in the theatre, and Chris praises the set designers and technical team for a “superhuman feat”.

This is the fourth Christmas show in five years that Chris has appeared in, and speaking about his directing style, he says he aims to ensure that everyone feels valued and comfortable to make mistakes.

“As a director you’ve got to be strong and stable, like a Prime Minister, but also friendly and allow everybody to thrive and make sure everybody is looked after”, he says.

Chris has written and directed this year’s CBeebies Christmas show, ‘Dick Whittington and his cat’, alongside ‘Cinderella’. This can be watched in the cinema at Lighthouse on December 3 and 11.

‘Cinderella’ opens on Thursday December 8 and runs until Saturday December 31 at Poole Lighthouse. Tickets are available at www.lighthousepoole.co.uk.