Please pay a visit in the New Year for Su Online's Review of Su's 2007. In the meantime have a wonderful Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.

Features include:

It's panto time
Oh no it’s not! Oh yes it is! Hi-de-Hi legend Su Pollard is just one of the stars taking to the stage when she stars as the Wicked Witch in the Malvern Theatres production of Snow White.

Tom Conti
Tom Conti has no dreams of being a film star or playing the Dane at the RSC. He just wants to carry on doing what he has been doing for decades — plying his trade as one of the country’s best-loved thespians. Andrea Calvesbert meets a man with a passion for acting.

Hear, boy
These very special dogs don’t just come when they’re called — they also listen out for the important sounds their owners can’t detect and could end up up saving their lives. Andrea Calvesbert found out more.

Let there be light
Ever wondered what it took to put up Worcester’s Christmas lights every year? Andrea Calvesbert had never given it much thought — until she went behind the scenes to find out.

Late-night shopping
Festive shopping can be pure pleasure - or a nightmare of last-minute panic buying in shops bulging at the seams with people all in a rush to do the same thing.

The magazine is OUT NOW!

Pantomime has always been one of Su's specialities and has been both principal boy and girl across the UK in Goldilocks, Babes In The Woods, Pinocchio, Jack And The Beanstalk, Mother Goose, Aladdin, and Dick Whittington. 

In 2002 Su took on the role of the Wicked Queen in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, her first outing as a "baddie". A role she enjoyed playing so much she reprised it for Christmas 2003, 2005, '06 and, indeed, this festive season too. 

Su's panto co-stars have included many top names in the acting profession, and much loved showbiz personalities; Matthew Kelly, Bernard Cribbins, Bernie Winters, Robyn Askwith, Gordon Honeycombe, Ray Meagher, Michael Elphick, Don Maclean, Peter Blake, Paul Danan, Louise English, Shaun Curry, Christopher Lillicrap, and Andy Collins to name but a few!

Su has entertained kids, of all ages, at the Bournemouth Pavilion, Richmond Theatre, Surrey, Her Majesty's Theatre, Aberdeen, North Wales Theatre Llandudno, Mayflower Southampton, Theatre Royal, Plymouth, Pavilion Theatre Rhyl, Tameside Hippodrome, Ashton under Lyne, to, again, name but a few.

Christmas 2003, and BBCi (as it was still called back then) in their review of Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, at the Hexagon in Reading said: "Su Pollard and Christopher Lillicrap, however, clearly are (cut out for the job). It takes talent to be able to turn from a simpering cleaning maid to a thoroughly booable evil queen. Christopher Lillicrap has done a masterful job as writer, combining almost every single panto cliche you've paid good money to see into a couple of fun-packed hours."

Last Christmas, The Stage reviewed Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs at the Mansfield Palace, declaring: "This production is as traditional as plum pudding but with a few surprise and choice morsels among the padding. 

Su Pollard proves to be a Hi-de-Hi! light, combining the evil-minded Wicked Queen with a lust-filled figure-of-fun, thus removing the fear factor so often prevalent in panto villains which can scare tiny kids."

And already this year The Hereford Times have enthused about Su's performance at the Malvern Theatre. They say: "There's snow business like Snow White business and it doesn't come much more pantomime showbiz then this - especially when it's in the safe hands of Su Pollard.

Malvern Theatres has pulled out a cracker of a seasonal offering. A turkey it certainly ain't but there's plenty of stuffing in the form of traditional gags, magic moments, colourful costumes and a witty sparkling script with liberal dashes of contemporary - just occasionally racy - humour.

But the star of the show is Su Pollard and, as the Wicked Queen, she takes the thing and runs with it."

Since Su Online first launched Su's panto appearances are as follows:

2000 Jack & The Beanstalk - Jack - Her Majestys Aberdeen
2001 Dick Whittington - Dick - North Wales Theatre Llandudno. 
2002 Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs - Wicked Queen - Lincoln Theatre Royal
2003 Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs - Wicked Queen - Hexagon Reading
2004 Annie - Miss Hannigan - Tameside Hippodrome Ashton under Lyne
2005 Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs - Wicked Queen - Pavilion Theatre Rhyl
2006 Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs - Wicked Queen - Mansfield Palace
2007 Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs - Wicked Queen - Malvern Theatres

Su simply sparkles in Snow White
By Juliette Kemp

There's snow business like Snow White business and it doesn't come much more pantomime showbiz then this - especially when it's in the safe hands of Su Pollard.

Malvern Theatres has pulled out a cracker of a seasonal offering. A turkey it certainly ain't but there's plenty of stuffing in the form of traditional gags, magic moments, colourful costumes and a witty sparkling script with liberal dashes of contemporary - just occasionally racy - humour.

The show gets the booing, hissing, cheering and general raising of roof under way the minute the fun starts and it doesn't let up until the end.

Andrew Agnew proved a versatile comedy performer, ably supported by Shaun Curry, Simon Leigh and Danielle Corlass in the title role.

But the star of the show is Su Pollard and, as the Wicked Queen, she takes the thing and runs with it.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs plays at Malvern Theatres until January 6.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; at Malvern Festival Theatre. Reviewed by Terry Grimley

Su Pollard belting out Screamin' Jay Hawkins' 50-year-old R&B classic I Put a Spell on You, even with specially-adapted lyrics, seems an unlikely showbiz prospect - but that's Pantoland for you.

At first I thought this was going to be better than it eventually turned out to be because it was so apparent that Ms Pollard was up for it.

Her rather impressively-delivered opening speech (of course, everything in panto is amplified nowadays) offered an eminently hissable Wicked Queen, and the audience soon made clear it wasn't going to be shy, either.

But it soon became difficult not to notice that this is panto on a budget. It may not be very far from Wolverhampton as the crow flies, but with the comparison of the Grand's Dick Whittington fresh in mind this did feel rather like like stepping down from the Championship to the Unibond League.

There's the same mix of Technicolor medievalism (additionally flavoured by the Disney film, which also supplies some of the songs) and middle-of-the-road pop, but sets and costumes are more rudimentary and what on earth is that material the Henchman's cape is supposed to be made of?

Anyway, this is the show that always guarantees work for seven actors of restricted growth, and members of the small actors' repertory company turn in performances which serve their purpose but are really more ho-hum than hi-ho.

Apart from Su Pollard the chief saving grace is Andrew Agnew as the court jester, Muddles, who clowns along in a particularly mellifluous Scottish accent.

* Running time:two hours, 35 minutes. Until January 6.

Along with Andrew Agnew (PC Plum from Balamory) she will join a host of starts bringing the fairytale to life.

The story sees princess Snow White threatening the vanity of her stepmother the Queen who decides to send a huntsman to kill Snow.

Instead of being killed she flees into hiding and finds the seven dwarfs and they quickly become a happy family.

Unfortunately, the Queen learns that Snow's still among the living, so sets out to kill her for herself.

With lots of action, singing, dancing as well as a wicked Queen and Prince Charming, a good time is promised for all.

It is on from Friday, December 14 to Sunday, January 6.

Tickets cost £18.50 from 01684 892277

A Wickedly Spectacular Pantomime for all the Family

Su Pollard in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with Andrew Agnew (PC Plum from Balamory)

From 14th December 2007 To 6th January 2008

Malvern Theatres, Grange Road, Malvern, Worcestershire, WR14 3HB. 

Phone bookings call 01684 892277. Visa, Mastercard & Switch accepted.
Fax Bookings to 01684 893300.
Email bookings to boxoffice@malvern-theatres.co.uk

The Hi-de-Hi! actress, escorted by Santa and his reindeer, made the town sparkle during Friday's ceremony, which was attended by hundreds of residents and schoolchildren.

Spokesman Chris Marks said: "It was a really great evening and Great Malvern was really heaving, it was packed.

"The atmosphere, most importantly, was fantastic and people didn't let the rain dampen their spirits."

The event started with a lantern parade from Santa's Grotto at the Coach House Theatre to Church Street.

A second parade lit the streets to the Christmas tree in Belle Vue Terrace.

The festivities will continue up until Christmas, with music, street theatre and arts and crafts taking place in the town every Saturday.

For more information visit: The festivities will continue up until Christmas, with music, street theatre and arts and crafts taking place in the town every Saturday.

For more information visit www.christmasinmalvern.co.uk

Tonight, Friday, November 30, was the Great Malvern Christmas lights switch on and although the snow wasn't real there was a real festive feel on the streets as the artificial flakes began to flutter down.

Children held their hands out to catch the snow, which carpeted Bellevue Island in white, as panto star Su Pollard greeted the crowds with her character Peggy's old catch phrase "Hi De Hi".

Crowds lined Church Street to watch as Su Pollard in a sleigh pulled by reindeer and followed by dozens of children with glowing paper lanterns paraded through the town to Bellevue Island.

A thousand paper lanterns had been made by local school children this week specially for the parade and Malvern Sea Cadets carried three enormous glowing paper stars.

Actress and comedian Su Pollard was popular with the crowds chatting and waving to the children and reminding them to be good Su, who is playing the Wicked Queen in Snow White at Malvern Theatres this Christmas, said she was looking forward to seeing all the children at the panto.

"It's one of the few times you get to go to the theatre and really join in and make a lot of noise, you'll love it," she told the children before switching on the lights.

The Christmas lights switch on was combined with a late night shopping evening, a craft market, Christmas carols and street entertainers and children could visit Father Christmas and write Christmas wishes on tags which were attached to coloured balloons and released during the evening.

Malvern Chase Brass Band played favourite carols outside the Lyttelton Well, children from the Downs School choir sang in the open air while the snowflakes fell. More local school choirs sang in a packed Malvern Priory.

Chairman of Malvern Town Council Mike Selby said the Christmas event had been just what the council and traders had wanted.

"The town has been full of families enjoying themselves. Everything has gone really well. It's been a wonderful Christmas event for the town," he said.

The festivities continue tomorrow with fireworks in Priory Park.

At 3.45pm, the first of two lantern parades by local school children marks the start of an evening of Christmas cheer for all the family. The youngsters will walk through the town with their own handmade lanterns. This will coincide with the opening of Santa's Grotto in the Coach House Theatre on Grange Road.

At 5.45pm, the second parade will move up to the Christmas tree on Belle Vue Island, where, at 6pm, actress Su Pollard will officially switch on the Christmas lights, followed by carols sung by the Downs School Choir. There will be countless other activities throughout the weekend including live music, entertainers, games, face painting, bell ringers and a ceilidh band.

Tomorrow (Saturday) the Christmas events continue, culminating with a fireworks display in Priory Park at 6.15pm.

Chairman of Malvern Town Council Mike Selby said: "The town council, along with Malvern traders and the district council have worked extremely hard to bring a taste of a more traditional Christmas to Great Malvern, with fun for all the family."

Most shops and eateries will be opening to the later time of 8pm tonight. There will also be arts, crafts and food markets on Abbey Road tonight, tomorrow, next Saturday, December 7, and on December 22, which will feature the very best of local artists, craftsmen and food producers. There will be a festive farmers' market in Abbey Road on Saturday, December 15.

The Paul O'Grady Show : Channel 4 - Tuesday 13th November : 5.00pm
The Paul O'Grady Show : Channel 4 Plus 1 - Tuesday 13th November : 6.00pm
HI-DE-HI!!……. HI-DE-HO!!! Four of the main cast members of the classic BBC comedy series - Su Pollard, Paul Shane, Ruth Madoc and Jeffrey Holland are coming for a generic chat and a reunion special. Leona Lewis is coming on the show to promote her current single Bleeding Love, and to discuss her new album Spirit, released on Monday 12th November.

Thanks for all the emails regarding the new Webletter look. It's great to receive opinions on how the site is developing.

As mentioned before Su Online will be changing over the coming months. We plan to give the site a new, fresh, bright look for, and during, the first months of 2008.

Stay tuned for more changes and regular Su updates.

Given her eccentric persona and well-known penchant for outlandish clothing, it's not surprising that Su Pollard is in her element when camping it up in full panto garb. This year is no exception - Sally Oldaker meets her as she prepares to play the Wicked Queen in Malvern Theatres' festive extravaganza, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Dressed in a typically flamboyant costume and with her trademark giant glasses present and correct, Su seems to be thoroughly enjoying herself and embracing the pantomime spirit, regardless of the fact that show's launch is actually taking place in August and Christmas still seems a long way off. This will be the third time she has played this particular role, which she describes as a "marvellous" part.

"I love playing the villain - and I love being booed as loudly as possible, because then I know I'm doing a good job!" she grins. "It's especially fun when the school parties come and the kids have permission to be as noisy as they like for a change."

As one of the nation's favourite entertainers, Su has appeared in a vast number of pantomimes, although the roles have changed over the years: "I used to be cast as principal boy in pantos, but when you reach a certain maturity, you have to let the bright young things take over to play the princes and princesses!" she says. "I don't dash about on stage quite as much these days, but I use my energy in a different way."

She says panto is one of her favourite genres, but points out that people should not underestimate the amount of work and stamina necessary for the heavy schedule - Snow White will see the cast performing twice a day for the best part of a month. "Panto is not to be taken lightly - it's not a walk in the park! It's important to give the audience real value for money. For many of the children, it will the first time they have been to a theatre, so I want their experience to be really positive."

Su is one of those rare performers who has always appealed to both adults and children, making her perfect for panto with its jokes aimed at all ages. Older audiences recall her most famous roles in comedy series Hi De Hi and You Rang M'Lord?, but she is also familiar to younger TV viewers, having voiced a number of popular children's programmes such as Penny Crayon, Jackanory and - more recently - Little Robots.

"I'm happy to be involved with anything, as long as it's good," she says frankly. "I have to remember that my performances will stick with me for the rest of my life!" Happily, there have been many more hits than misses in a showbiz career spanning three decades. Su's love of acting began when she played an angel in a school nativity play at the age of six - and she also discovered how to get a laugh from the audience when she fell through the box she was standing on!

She later joined her local Nottingham Arts Theatre, where she was encouraged to learn about all aspects of the stage, and at the age of 16 began singing in charity shows and working men's clubs. Su's TV debut was her 1974 appearance on Opportunity Knocks, in which she was unfortunately denied first place by a singing dog. Never one to be put off by such outrageous fortune, she was soon winning parts in stage musicals from Grease to Godspell.

Her first comedy role was in the BBC's Two Up, Two Down, where she had ample opportunity to indulge her wacky dress sense as hippy squatter Flo. However, it was of course the immensely popular Hi De Hi that made Su a household name. Is she fed up with people still thinking of her as Peggy?

"Not at all - it doesn't get on my nerves even now," she maintains. "The series was quality stuff, with great writers and producers, which is why it's still so popular. We all had tremendous fun, and I even still have my costume; I've kept it all these years!"

It's a good thing Su looks back on the role with such fondness, as the Hi De Hi phenomenon - which also spawned a musical stage version - shows no signs of fading. The series has recently been repeated on UKGold, introducing a whole new generation to Peggy and the gang, and a full-scale reunion is scheduled for October, marking 20 years since the last episodes were filmed.

"There's also going to be a televised reunion on the Paul O'Grady Show," Su reveals. "Paul's a massive Hi De Hi fan!"

Throughout her career, Su has successfully combined TV and theatre work, guest starring on countless light entertainment shows and taking part in no less than five Royal Variety Galas. On stage, she has appeared in plays as diverse as Abigail's Party, Romeo & Juliet and the Vagina Monologues, and recently completed a six-month West End run of Menopause The Musical, a tale of four women of a certain age who meet when they fight over a bra in Marks & Spencer.

"Menopause was thoroughly entertaining - the women in the audience really identified with the characters and their hormones," Su explains. "When we saw them laughing and crying, we felt we'd given a sense of empowerment to women who are going through a rotten time in their lives. Plus, it's very funny - all the songs are classic hits rewritten to relate to the menopause!"

It's not too much of a leap to suggest that Snow White itself contains themes of female empowerment: the megalomaniac Queen - far more intimidating than any male tyrant - with her determination to hang on to power, and the heroine adapting to changed circumstances and forging her own life (albeit doing housework for a pack of blokes and eventually getting hitched) But, cod psychology aside, the Christmas panto is all about being daft and having fun - and that's what Su does best. She clearly loves every minute of performing, and if the Malvern audience enjoy the show half as much as she will, they're in for a treat.

Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs runs from Friday December 14 to Sunday January 6 - book now on 01684 892277.

Meet the cast Also appearing in Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs - as Muddles the Jester - is Andrew Agnew, better known as PC Plum from Balamory. He describes the hugely popular BBC show as the perfect training for panto: "Many of the scenes were unrehearsed, and we really had to interact with the children. You can't kid kids - they will let you know if you're not doing a good job!"

Andrew is no stranger to panto, having played a variety of parts (including the dame) as well as many other acting roles. Although Balamory is no longer being filmed, he will soon be touring the UK with the CBeebies Live show, and has also turned his hand to directing with Me Too!, the latest from the Balamory stable.

Snow White herself is played by the beautiful Danielle Corlass, whose musical credentials encompass Grease, the Rocky Horror Show and 42nd Street. "Acting has been my dream since I was a little girl - I can't imagine doing anything else!" she says. Her suitor is played by Simon Leigh, who is obviously the go-to guy for panto producers in search of a prince, having played this part no less than eight times in a career encompassing extensive theatre and cabaret work.

The crucial role of the woodcutter who cannot bring himself to murder Snow White is played by Timothy Morand, whose TV credits include Secret Army - he also appeared in the classic film A Bridge Too Far.