With June set to be bustin' out all over in less than twenty-four hours, it's time to look back on May, a month filled to the brim with panto news.
One of May's biggest announcements has been dubbed 'The Battle of Brum', with Birmingham set to host the country's two biggest pantos of 2015.
The Hippodrome's Aladdin will see Marti Pellow (Abanazar), Julian Clary (Spirit of the Ring), Lee Mead (Aladdin), Andrew Ryan (Widow Twankey) and Matt Slack (Wishee Washee) take to the stage for Qdos Entertainment, whilst the Barclaycard Arena sees Paul O'Grady (Fairy Godfather), Bradley Walsh (Buttons) and Dick and Dom (Prince Charming and Dandini) star in what is billed as "The world's biggest panto".
The new venture sees Qdos co-founder Jon Conway produce Cinderella for nine performances featuring a cast of over 100, including a 50-foot castle, gospel choir, acrobats and animatronic reindeer.
But Birmingham isn't the only place that will see a panto battle play out. In Chatham, Magic Beans Pantomimes is going all-out for its production of Dick Whittington at the Britannia Theatre, part of Dickens World. The visitor attraction has hosted a pantomime for the past few years, but 2015 marks the venue's first multi-venue producer, not only adding to Magic Beans Pantomimes' existing portfolio, but setting up the venue as a rival to the Central Theatre, Chatham's Beauty and Beast produced by Chris Jordan Productions.
This year, Stevi Ritchie joins Sue Holderness at the Central Theatre, whilst fellow soapstar Jessie Wallace, aka Kat Slater, plays Fairy Godmother in Hastings. Brookside's Dean Sullivan dons a dress as Nurse Glucose at the Stockport Plaza whilst Wendi Peters, Paul Laidlaw and Aidan O'Neil take to the stage in Stevenage's Sleeping Beauty.
In Weston-super-Mare, EastEnders' Joe Swash plays Buttons at the Playhouse, with Coronation Street's Terence Maynard summoning boos as Abanazar in Sunderland.
In the world of pop, Rhydian Roberts and Sonia join the Rhyl Pavilion's cast of Cinderella with Amelia Lily making her panto debut in Goldilocks and The Three Amazing Bears at the Forum Theatre, Billingham.
911's Lee Brennan will be granted three wishes in Leeds Carriageworks' Aladdin whilst X-Factor star Lloyd Daniels and Eternal's Vernie Bennett take to the stage as Jack and the Spirit of the Beans in Redditch.
Panto regular Kev Johns returns to Swansea for another season as Dame for Qdos with Ceri Dupree, Joe Pasquale and Duncan James joining the cast of the company's Aladdin at the Mayflower, Southampton.
Nigel Ellacott returns to Llandudno to play Dame in Snow White whilst Elaine C Smith returns to Aberdeen to play the Magical Mermaid in Peter Pan.
Marking ten years of panto for First Family Entertainment in Stoke-on-Trent, Jonathan Wilkes is back at the Regent as Smee alongside Christian Patterson's Hook whilst Aylesbury's Waterside Theatre sees regular Comic Andy Collins return in the role of Idle Jack.
Derby's brand new Arena will host Leon Craig's Widow Twankey with Basingstoke's Anvil set to welcome Mark Little, Mark Rhodes, Melanie Walters, Chris Pizzey and Philip Meeks in Jack and Beanstalk for UK Productions.
Gemma Naylor and Chris Edgerley will make an appearance in UK Productions' Aladdin at the Palace Theatre, Mansfield whilst Sandra Dickinson makes dreams come true as the Fairy Godmother for Paul Holman Associates in Rickmansworth.
2015 sees a number of companies add Peter Pan to their portfolio of pantomimes, further cementing its status as a core panto subject for adaptation. Both Chris Jordan Productions and Shone Productions will present the title for the first time in Eastbourne and Middleton respectively, joining the previously announced première of Imagine Theatre's production in Inverness.
Magic Beans Pantomimes is also producing the title for the first time and has decided to situate the Dame in the role of the Mermaid, which will be played by Peter Brad-Leigh.
Lesser produced titles have also been announced for this season, including Berwick upon Tweed's Red Riding Hood, Liverpool Everyman's rock 'n' roll Rapunzel - Hairway to Heaven and Hertford Theatre's Hansel and Gretel.
Adding to the tally of alternatives, St Helens Theatre Royal will see Marc Bayliss play an evil Dandini in Regal Entertainments' Cinderella, a role once relished by Stefan Booth and Grant Stott for Qdos Entertainment. The production also features regular Dame Simon Foster as the Fairy Godmother and Crissy Rock and Charlie Griffiths as the Ugly Sisters.
And finally... along with alternative titles and alternative narratives, comes alternative venues. News this month revealed that York Theatre Royal's Dick Whittington and his Meerkat is set to be staged in the Signal Box Theatre at the York Railway Museum after archaeological excavation work in the stalls discovered the medieval foundations of St Leonard's Hospital.
This means that the Theatre Royal's beloved panto will be presented in traverse, utilising the set-up for the Signal Box's The Railway Children which has a running rail track through the centre. As a result, the pantomime will welcome a new designer to the team, with Berwick Kaler, Martin Barrass, Suzy Cooper and David Leonard all confirmed to star.