Right wingers try to bring curtain down on panto because it stars a drag queen

Watching Window Twankey or Dame Trott making veiled innuendos in a room with screaming toddlers is a staple of British family life.

We all remember yelling ‘he’s behind you’ at a pantomime dame when life was simpler and all that mattered was the ice cream interval.

Now conservatives want to put a stop to all that as they lose the plot over a panto dame being in a panto.

Right-wingers have threatened to protest a Christmas theatre show in Richmond because they are angry at the appearance of a drag queen.

The campaigners have been told to ‘touch grass’ and reminded there is ‘nothing more British’ than a historic panto drag act.

Dragged Around London are performing are holding a ‘family-friendly’ ‘Drag Tales’ Xmas show on December 19 at Richmond Theatre in west London, starring drag queen Tania LeCoq.

The experience, for ages 0 to 5, promises ‘captivating storytelling, joyful carols, energetic dancing, and delightful puppet shows.’

However the production has sparked fury among a fringe of Conservatives, raging at the drag queen Tania LeCoq leading the ‘festive experience’.

Turning Point UK, the British arm of assassinated right-winger Charlie Kirk’s organisation, threatened to protest against the show.

They called on the venue to ‘protect our children’ and shut the event down.

One 17-year-old activist called Young Bob, who is an ambassador for Turning Point UK, complained on TalkTV that ‘five year olds are too young to explore this material’.

He said the pantomime show was a ‘marxist delusion’ that was ‘hypersexualising children’.

After threatening to protest the event, people have stepped in to remind Turning Point that festive drag shows are nothing new.

Karl Hansen, editor-at-large of left-wing Tribune Magazine, said on X: ‘There is nothing more British than a pantomime dame. Our young conservatives have been so Yankified they no longer recognise their own culture.’

GB News’ Tom Harwood even said of Young Bob: ‘Poor Guy. Never been taken to see a traditional family panto in his life.’

One west London local recalled: ‘I saw several pantomimes at Richmond Theatre during my childhood, and there was nothing “perverted” about any of the performances.

‘No cast members exposing themselves and all, just wearing silly costumes and wigs for the laughs.’

What is the history of the pantomime dame?

The role of a panto dame dates back to the beginning of theatre.

Girls and women were often played by men for comedic purposes, dating all the way back to ancient Rome.

The humorous tradition continued well after the Restoriation, when it was no longer considered ‘indecent’ for a women to appear on stage.

Although it began in Italy, it is now strongly rooted in British identitiy.

In the Victorian era, theatre began allowing spoken word, which kicked off the tradition in England.

It then evolved to include fairy-tale characters and magical beings.

A custom quickly developed which saw pantomime shows open on Boxing Day, with families making it a holiday staple.

One of the most famous pantomime dames was music hall comedian Dan Leno.

His performance as Mother Goose, with a bun-wig, shawl and
button boots, created the blueprint for modern panto dames.

Some of Britain’s most famous actors have taken to the stage in drag.

Sir Ian McKellen and the late Paul O’Grady have all left young audiences in stitches as pantomime dames.

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