THE debut production of ‘Red Riding Hood’ by the newly-formed Harbour View Players proved that talent is alive and kicking in the village of Combwich.

The pantomime at Otterhampton village hall played to packed houses and sold out so quickly the group could have added several more performances.

The story is simple . . . the Huntsman (Martin Rackham), who has been cruel to the animals in the forest, is turned into a terrifying wolf by the Fairy Silverleaf (Carly Hill).

The curse will remain until a mortal takes pity on him, but, as is the case with most pantomimes, it’s not the story which is the most important ingredient.

Richard Navoy’s endearing performance as Dame Granny Hardbake was a complete joy.

He engaged the audience from the word go and immediately had them on his side. More comedy was supplied by Andy Turnball as King Rulemwell, with his daughter, Charlotte Turnball, playing the title role of Red Riding Hood.

The evil Baron Badlot (Dave Catchpole) is constantly trying to collect the villagers’ back rent with the aid of his bumbling sidekick, Squire Squabble (Dan Webber), to much laughter from the audience.

Plenty of the traditional glamour of pantomime was on show in the guise of the lovely Suzanne Salway as Robin the principal boy and love interest Catherine, played expertly by the equally attractive Debbie Stimpson.

This was their first ever stage appearance, but you would have thought they were both seasoned performers.

Grace Bennet added further sparkle to the evening along with Isobel Webber, Bethany Eggby and Melissa Bryan, but the stars of the show had to be Larry Mild and Barry Bitter, again played by newcomers Murray Lister and Ian Newbury.

Their double act had the audience in stitches, and was reminiscent of Abbott & Costello, Laurel & Hardy and Cannon & Ball all rolled into one!

The hilarious antics of both would not have been out of place in any professional production.

The slapstick humour of the school room scene and the bedroom scene, where all the comedy men attempted to sleep in the same bed, will go down in Combwich comedy history.

Their ‘Chinese’ sketch, with a special surprise appearance by Matt Nicklin from the Anchor Inn, almost brought the house down, and the comedy ballet to Swan Lake was simply hilarious.

Written and directed by Chris Ponka, the panto was staged perfectly to fit the space and turned the village hall into what looked like a real theatre.

Sadly, there are plans afoot to remove the stage from Otterhampton village hall completely.

If this is the case, next year’s production may have to find a new venue, which would be a great loss to Combwich.