UK FIRST AS PANTO IS SCREENED IN HOSPITALS NATIONWIDE!

Following on from the success of last year’s regional hospital screenings, this year people in hospitals all over the UK and Ireland will get the chance to see Newcastle Theatre Royal’s pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk from the comfort of their bedsides in what will be a UK first!  This Saturday, 21 December, the theatre show will be beamed for free to hospital bed TV screens in 152 NHS hospitals, giving thousands of sick children (and everyone else!) the chance to experience the magic of pantomime! Last year the Theatre Royal’s pantomime was beamed to 6,700 children’s beds in hospitals across the North East following two years of planning. Hundreds of young patients in the region forgot about their illnesses for a short while when the colourful production of Aladdin was beamed to their bedside. Now, following on from the success of last year, the pantomime screenings are being rolled out nationally across 152 NHS hospitals in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, including 13 hospitals in the North East. The screenings will cover 93% of all NHS hospitals and will be available not only in children’s wards but across all wards – that equates to over 168,000 beds! The Theatre Royal pantomime appeals to young and alike and is the perfect offering to cheer up those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to see a pantomime this Christmas. The project is a unique collaboration between the NHS, Newcastle Theatre Royal and Hospedia, the national hospital broadcast network, and is a first in the UK, if not worldwide! It is the brain-child of Theatre Royal Trustee Howard Tait (chief executive of Newcastle advertising agency Martin Tait Redheads), and everyone working on the project is giving their services for free – including Hospedia, Future Films, the pantomime cast and crew and all the hospitals involved. Everyone will have the opportunity to watch the show from their hospital beds at 2pm this Saturday, 21 December on channel 34, with repeat screenings at 4pm and 6pm. Commenting on the exciting collaboration, Howard Tait said: “There’s no doubt that the Newcastle Theatre Royal Panto is the region’s most popular Christmas show – everyone loves it! We are often able to bring a small number of more mobile children from hospital to the show, and seeing the children’s faces light up just made me wonder how we could extend this magic to many more children unable to leave their beds. As far as we are aware this has never been done before, anywhere in the world. It’s been a long time in the planning and with many stakeholders involved - no easy feat! I’m so pleased we got there in the end.  For many this will be a dream come true.” Philip Bernays, Chief Executive of Newcastle Theatre Royal, said:  “To be able to screen the show to so many hospitals is absolutely remarkable – Howard has worked very hard in planning this project over the past three years and we are extremely delighted with what he has achieved.  Our panto really is one of the best in the world, and we are extremely proud of it – it makes sense that the Theatre Royal should lead the way and be the first theatre to undertake a project like this.” Anne Stewart, operations manager at Hospedia, added: “We are delighted to play our part in spreading some joy and happiness to patients in hospital at Christmas.  Keeping patients happy while they are in hospital is our business.” Jack and the Beanstalk is the Theatre Royal’s most successful panto yet – over 85,000 tickets have already been sold. West End producer, and one of the world’s leading lights in pantomime, Michael Harrison, has pulled out all the stops, combining the traditional elements of family pantomime with amazing visual effects and the best slapstick humour! Theatre favourites Clive Webb (Farmer Trot), Danny Adams (Jack) and Chris Hayward (Dame Rita Trot) return with an abundance of laughter and stunning costumes! Oh - and some very magical beans! When not managing his company, the biggest advertising agency in the north, the man behind the hospital project, Howard Tait, works tirelessly for theatrical causes and charity.  He led the campaign to bring the late Pavarotti to Newcastle in 2000 (his only planned performance in the UK that year), a remarkable coup and a complete sell out which brought a massive boost to the region’s cultural credibility. He is very active on the Theatre Royal board, and for a number of years has brought children from The Freeman Hospital in Newcastle to see the pantomime. Jack and the Beanstalk will be screened to participating hospitals for free at 2pm this Saturday (21 December), with repeat showings at 4pm and 6pm, all on channel 34.  The show itself will run at the Theatre Royal until Saturday 18 January 2014, tickets are priced from £11 (booking fees apply) and can be purchased from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 or select your own seat and book online at www.theatreroyal.co.uk.