THE show must go on, and even Storm Darragh couldn’t prevent the Hall For Cornwall pantomime from launching on Saturday.

Jack and his beanstalk crew had their work cut out entertaining the weather-weary, half of whom had battled traffic jams to get there.

But what a treat was in store, with colourful dames, boo-tastic baddies, audience participation, a foot-tapping modern musical soundtrack and a troupe of super-talented cast members determined to put the fun back into Christmas.

A huge shout-out to Patrick Dineen, who as dim but lovable Jack made a hugely engaging principal boy who could sing and dance like a dream; and Susannah van den Berg, a superb villainess who dominated all her scenes.

The Cornish contingent - Colin Leggo as Goosey, Truronian Charlotte Rutherfoord as Smart Simone and Gareth Cooper as ‘Allo ‘Allo style Frenchman Harri Co’vert - were just brilliant, pantomime cow Jagga simply adorable and the giant a jaw-dropping feat of puppetry.

But the stage surely belonged to Edward Rowe, aka Kernow King, who was clearly born to play a dame. As Maid Trott, he pouted and preened and promenaded a variety of outlandish outfits, including a magnificent final gown designed by Falmouth University students. If you’re a man sitting in the front row, watch out. That’s all I’ll say.

The script had been tweaked to appeal to a distinctly Cornish audience. Some of the cornier jokes fell a bit flat, and while panto has always strived to appeal on two levels, I found the adult jokes a bit on the blue side for a family show.

But I loved the 12 Days of Christmas rewrite, while my partner was tickled by fellow Truro boy Aidan Nightingale, whose Farmer Andrew would amble on and gibber unintelligibly, ending each utterance with “Proper job, innum?”

In short: is it worth a look? Oh yes, it is!