Edinburgh’s panto stars Allan Stewart, Grant Stott, Jordan Young and gang take to the Festival Theatre stage for one final hoolie in Jack & The Beanstalk before they head back home to the King’s Theatre next year. Packed with jokes-a-plenty, spellbinding special effects and one of the most beautiful sets in all of Pantoland, this year’s festive season just got even brighter.
There are giants in the sky! Jack McTrot teams up with Princess Jill to take on the wicked servant to the giant, Fleshcreep. With the help of Dame May McTrot, Pat the Cow and the Spirit of the Beans, they set off on an out of this world adventure.
For this final outing on the large Festival Theatre stage, the Crossroads team really have went all out by ensuring that they bring Edinburgh one final large-scale production before heading back to the roots of first-class panto within the city, the old lady of Leven Street.
The team have never seemed more comfortable or at home on the larger stage than this year. Allan Stewart who is celebrating twenty-eight years as a dame, returns to rinse every bit of stage time into moments of joy and laughter. Allan has a natural talent to hook the audience and get them behind him. Each joke and sketch, no matter if its old or new has a golden delivery which would make the coldest of hearts crack a smile. There seems no slowing down for this Dame who has become a treasured piece of the Edinburgh theatre landscape.
Twenty-two years ago, Grant Stott debuted as a panto villain, funnily enough playing Fleshcreep, since then Edinburgh hasn’t stopped booing him. This year the big tidy is back as Fleshcreep and is given quite a considerable amount of stage time. Featuring returning favourite routines, new cracking jokes, loads of shush listens (of course some rather disheartened splattering of mon the hibs), plus an incredible rework of a Rocky Horror classic. Stott continues to be the best panto baddie in all the land, and this outing allows him to flex his muscles and take centre stage, bringing boos, hisses and hysterical laughter to proceedings.
Jordan Young only joined the King’s Panto gang in 2019 and has quickly become a cherished member of the cast, his unfathomable energy, great comedic timing and down-to-earth personality was all on show as Jack McTrot. His comedy antics aren’t the only thing taking centre stage this year, but also tackling the hero role, with a mighty climb up a beanstalk giving a spectacular end to act one.
Claire Gray returns as Jack’s best pal, Pat, the cow – whilst this is a fun and camp role for Claire, the material and decisions made for the character don’t fit her known cheeky and usual Scottish influenced portrayal which this character could have easily had written in.
Gail Watson is on fire as Spirit of The Beans, her energy, vocals and cheeky persona is a brilliant watch. Whilst there’s not much stage time for this character, Gail makes every moment count and brings so much to this supporting role. Amber Sylvia Edwards is dazzling as Princess Jill, with yet another role lacking stage time, she brings all you would expect with a panto princess. Whilst paired with Gail and Claire, they bring a comedic and sassy trio.
The ensemble for this production take on complex choreo, get stuck into the comedy antics and sport fabulous costumes throughout the whole production. The ensemble for this year’s panto are Rebecca Duke, Maya Duncan, Cameron Flynn, Luke Heald, Bevan Henry, Katy Kedslie, Varrie McElwaine, Shereen Osman, Luke Perry and Jack Webb,
Harry Michaels and Allan Stewart write this year’s script with additional material from Matt Slack, Grant Stott and Jordan Young. In terms of comedy, they bring everything you’d expect with a Festival/King’s panto and then some, truly making this a non-stop laughing marathon. The sketches and jokes are as tight as always, providing entertainment for audiences of all ages. We’ve seen narrative influence slowly fade throughout the years with the King’s/Festival panto, however this year it really was a comedy show with the theme of Jack & The Beanstalk. There could have been slightly more in terms of narrative to make the production flow better and be more cohesive, however in terms of quality of hilarity and panto, this is undoubtedly the strongest year at the Festival Theatre.
Ed Curtis directs this production with the knowledge that the star trio win audiences over every year, so he allows them to play as much as they can. The only minor criticism is that transitions from scene to scene and key moments could be paced a little better. However, he knows that letting Allan, Grant & Jordan loose and allowing their antics to be at the forefront for this show, audiences are guaranteed a great night out.
Karen Martin brings choreography to add to the energy of numbers and begin the visual feast of this show. Mark Walters’ set design is simply stunning with the bright contemporary design of the rainbows and stars bringing an almighty standard to this year’s production. Complimented by Rory Beaton’s dazzling lighting design and Teresa Nalton’s simply sublime costume design. Final shout out has to be to The Twins FX who bring a terrifying giant and an impressive beanstalk to proceedings. This really is the best a panto has looked in Edinburgh.
Jack & The Beanstalk is a triumphant final bow on the Festival Theatre stage, promising dazzling sets, tremendous costumes, scary visual effects, non-stop laughter and an out of this world adventure to excite audiences of all ages.
Photography – Douglas Robertson
Playing Festival Theatre until Sunday 11th January 2026, get tickets here – https://www.capitaltheatres.com/shows/panto-2025-jack-and-the-beanstalk/
Theatre Scotland 
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