Dame Jack is back for his tenth Pompey Panto this Christmas

SussexWorld

The ever-unpredictable Jack Edwards will be our Dame Dolly in Dick Whittington at the Kings Theatre, Southsea from November 29-December 31 – his tenth panto at the venue.

Transcript

00:00Good morning, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Sussex Newspapers, my annual

00:06chat with Jack Edwards, Dame, Dame Jack Edwards. And Jack, you are once again 10th Panto in

00:13Portsmouth at the King's Theatre, and well you're looking possibly glamorous for half

00:18past nine in the morning. Oh thank you very much. Show us that hat, it goes up and up.

00:22Would you like to see it? Let me, let me, let me do a, it gets bigger and bigger and

00:29bigger. There we are, look at that, look at that. Phil, it's always lovely to speak to you.

00:36Thank you for having me again. Well thank you, and you just love this role, don't you? It's so

00:41absolutely your role over many years now in Portsmouth. Yeah, I really do. People expect

00:45you to be outrageous, don't they? Oh of course, I mean, you know, I think, I think if I wasn't

00:50outrageous then people would think there was something wrong, but I think it's just so

00:54important that, you know, we just give so much back to the city because, you know, they, they

00:58support us through the year, and it's, it's time for us to give something back, and, and I really

01:03hope that people do come and, you know, come and see us because they, they know that we're always

01:08in for a good laugh. But what is it about that role of Dame that you love so much? Well for me,

01:13I'm very lucky in that I can get away with quite a bit. Quite a bit? Well, you know, a lot,

01:24yeah, I'm unpredictable. It just depends on what's going on at the time, and I think the

01:30audience do expect that from me now, so yeah, I think I'm, yeah, I'm known as being very naughty.

01:36Yeah, and you said you have clear ideas about what a Dame is, and you were making a point that you

01:41are absolutely a Dame who is obviously a bloke in a dress. Absolutely. Why, why does that matter?

01:46Why is that crucial? I think it does matter because I think with, with a man and a frock,

01:52I think you just, you know, it becomes that mumsy thing, and I think the, the kids feel quite

01:56comfortable with you. Whereas I think if you go down the sort of drag queen route, which I've got

02:01no problem with, that's a very different Dame, but they can sometimes become quite scary,

02:08and I think that that's, that's the only difference is, you know, you've got, you've

02:11got a big guy and a frock, as you know, fat bloke in a dress, and I think people feel warm and,

02:17you know, I'm cuddly, and I think they feel, you know, good around me, so, and I hope that

02:24that's what I portray. Absolutely, and it, as we were saying, it sets up the theatre for the year,

02:28doesn't it, a successful panto? It really does, it's really important for us to put on a

02:34successful show, and, you know, and hopefully do well, and then that sets, as you say,

02:39sets up for the year, it's really important for us. Absolutely, so panto number 10.

02:44Panto number 10, what's happened? I think we've got old, hasn't it?

02:48Yes, I know, is there another 10 years in me? At the very least, the way you were looking today,

02:55Jack, I'd say at least. Love you, Phil Hewitt.

03:01I find that slightly threatening.

03:05Fantastic, really lovely to see you. And you.

03:08Seeing you on stage again.

03:11Thanks, Phil.

03:12Bye-bye.

Category

Transcript

Recommended