As I explain the plot of The Pied Piper of Hamelin to my 13-year-old niece, I watch her expression turn to horror. 

“Well, there’s this piper who is asked to rid a town of a rat infestation. He plays his pipe and all the rats drown in the river. When the mayor refuses to pay, the piper lures all the children away and they are never seen again. I think they end up in a mountain. So, um, the parents lose all their children.”

Come to think of it, the story is deeply disturbing. Thankfully, in this version at Bury Met, presented by The Big Tiny, we are treated to an evening of pure joy, silliness, and rudery. In short, the holy trinity of panto. 

In a few short years, The Big Tiny has established itself as Bury’s premier panto company. In fact, 2022’s Dick Whittington remains one of the best Christmas shows I’ve ever seen, so it boded well that the same writer/director, Ben Richards, was at the helm for 2025’s tomfoolery. And he didn’t disappoint. Local references were amped up including a marauding army of black puddings and multiple mentions of Bury’s famous son, Sir Robert Peel. Both overt and subtle, the jokes came thick and fast, and the costumes were suitably over the top. 

Meanwhile, the uniformly excellent ensemble cast riffed and romped, clearly at ease with each other but not afraid to – in the best panto tradition – divert from the script. And, in a scene you couldn’t make up, the hapless audience member singled out as the dame’s love interest (a magnificent Anthony Gyde) turned out to work for the Arts Council. 

Two hours flew by with barely a chance to catch our breath or wipe tears of laughter from our eyes. There was more than a bit of blue for the dads as well as a mix of songs that satisfied both young and old. Running jokes were cleverly intertwined in the sparkling script, not least the naming of the Poop family. Much like every reference to Captain Darling in TV’s Blackadder never ceased to amuse, so Little Bea Poop and her two boys raised repeated chuckles. 

The triumph of this Pied Piper reminded me of my life in London when, each Christmas, the Hackney panto was my theatrical moment of the year. But Bury’s 2025 seasonal offering is panto on acid, a fever dream from which no one wants to wake.

And Richard from the Arts Council – you were a great sport. Perhaps a bit of extra cash thrown Bury’s way is now in order?

By Helen Nugent, Editor of Northern Soul

Main image: photo by Howard Barlow

 

The Pied Piper of Hamelin is at Bury Met until December 28, 2025. For more information, click here.