Iain not caught napping in Coventry’s Sleeping Beauty

Published: 20 October 2018
Reporter: Steve Orme

Iain Lauchlan as Nanny McWheeze Credit: Joe Bailey

Writer and director Iain Lauchlan will take part in his 24th panto at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry: Sleeping Beauty.

With a career spanning more than 40 years, Lauchlan is best known as writer of the television series The Tweenies. He has worked on a range of other TV shows including Play School and Fingermouse.

In Sleeping Beauty, he takes the role of Nanny McWheeze and will be joined by Belgrade favourite Craig Hollingsworth as Muddles the Jester.

Joanna Thorne, who recently completed her training at London’s Arts Educational Schools, plays the dashing prince and Melissa Brown-Taylor is Princess Belle.

Good fairy Anna Mitcham returns to the Belgrade after appearing in the 2016 panto Dick Whittington and Cinderella in 2010. She is a regular in the Tabs Productions Classic Thriller Season in Nottingham, appearing as Sheila Wendice in Frederick Knott’s Dial M for Murder and Lilly Lovage in Karen Henson’s Marie Lloyd and the Music Hall Murder, both in 2017.

Laura Judge plays the wicked fairy Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty while Vicky Field and Declan Wilson are the King and Queen. Completing the cast will be Katy Anna Southgate and Ivano Turco along with a junior chorus of children.

Lauchlan said, “that’s us all ready to rock and roll. The script’s finalised, the set is being finished, costumes are nearly complete and I have my wonderful cast for this year. It’s great to see a mix of new faces and old favourites.”

Sleeping Beauty runs at the Belgrade from Wednesday 21 November until Saturday 5 January 2019.

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