Free festive family trail in Coventry city centre as panto season gets underway

Priyanka Patel

22 November 2024 at 6:39 am·2-min read

The Dick Whittington trail is around the city centre as panto season is here — -Credit: (Image: Coventry BID)

Panto season has started at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry, with businesses in the city centre getting into the panto spirit by hosting a family-friendly explorer trail throughout December.

Coventry BID has organised the Dick Whittington Trail with businesses in the city centre. In total 32 businesses are taking part with businesses from Upper Precinct, Lower Precinct, Hertford Street, West Orchards, Broadgate and Trinity Street involved.

Dick Whittington is urging families to get out into the city and help 'catch the rats and cats' which have taken up homes in the city centre's shop windows. Organisers say they have to be 'found and returned' to Belgrade Theatre for the six weeks of panto performances.

Families can go out in the city centre on their way to the performance to spot all the cats and rats in shop windows, with the chance to win a prize of £250 in M&S vouchers. Chief Executive of Coventry BID, Joanne Glover, says Christmas is a 'special time' in the city centre, with the trail another reason to visit Coventry this festive period.

She said: "It is absolutely fantastic to see all of our businesses coming together to support the trail and provide a fun, free and family-friendly experience. We hope it will encourage families and children to explore the city centre and build excitement before they head off to enjoy the panto at the Belgrade."

The much-loved classic Dick Whittington is now showing at the theatre until Saturday, January 4, 2025. Head of Communications at Belgrade Theatre, Ray Clenshaw, said it is great to see the city coming together to support the panto this year.

"The panto is where Coventry comes to celebrate Christmas and a fixture in our calendar. It is part of the fabric of the city, and generation after generation has enjoyed the panto at Belgrade. Coventry is a city of partnership, warmth and connectivity, and that is reflected in the business community working together to spotlight Dick Whittington this year.

"We’d like to thank Coventry BID for supporting the initiative and look forward to welcoming people from across Coventry and beyond to the panto," Ray said.

For more information about the Dick Whittington trail, click here.

Get daily headlines and breaking news emailed to you - it’s FREE

The Guardian
Milton Jones: ‘I was heckled by Paul Weller and Robbie Williams at the same gig!’
The standup on the power of strange shirts, the importance of never Googling yourself and how he came to specialise in one-liners
BuzzFeed
I Genuinely Can't See "Wicked" On Broadway The Same Way Again After Reading These Facts About The Original Production And More
For the early Wicked rehearsals, Idina Menzel had to stay in Elphaba's green makeup all day so that they could test what the makeup would look like "under different lights."
The Hollywood Reporter
Betty Gilpin Taking Over Lead Role in ‘Oh, Mary!’ on Broadway
Gilpin will play Mary Todd Lincoln, taking on the part from the show's creator, Cole Escola.
People
Jonathan Scott and Zooey Deschanel Have a Broadway Date Night at “Back to the Future” — and Pose with a Special Star
The couple posed with the DeLorean as they met the cast and crew of 'Back to the Future: The Musical'
Bromley News Shopper
Dad 'living in nightmare' searching for Lewisham girl weeks after disappearance
A heartbroken dad has said he is “living in a nightmare” as he searches for his missing daughter who disappeared from Lewisham more than two weeks ago.
York Press
York Theatre Royal reveals its panto for next year
York Theatre Royal has revealed details of its pantomime for next year.
Glasgow Times
Boyband star to perform in War of the Worlds musical in Glasgow
A former Masked Singer winner is set to star in War of the Worlds musical in Glasgow next year.
Manchester Evening News
Salford's Sleeping Beauty goes under the hammer this week - and many fear its original purpose is about to be lost
The ‘architecturally important’ venue dates back to 1899 and has been on the Theatres at Risk Register for nearly 20 years
Hello!
John Torode's wife Lisa Faulkner breaks silence as MasterChef pulled from schedule
Gregg Wallace has unfollowed his MasterChef co-star and his partner on Instagram
Manchester Evening News
Supermarket selling grocery nearly 20% more than others is most expensive for tenth week running
The retailer has been called out for selling the key item more than its competitors
Manchester Evening News
Man finds unassuming £20 jumper in charity shop – then realises he's hit jackpot
Bargain hunting expert Danielle was left stunned as her partner pulled out a men's sweatshirt, which despite its £20 price tag was possibly the 'best charity shop find ever'
The Independent
Melanie Sykes says ‘jaw-dropping’ Gregg Wallace encounter made her quit TV
‘I was done,’ Sykes said after ‘Celebrity MasterChef’ host’s remark
People
Sofía Vergara Poses Topless and Shares Sexy Bikini Snaps from Colombian Holiday Vacation with Her Family
The actress shared photos of herself posing in a sexy black bikini as she and her family spent Thanksgiving in Colombia
The Independent
Watch live: Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs as his reset Brexit plans suffer another blow
Watch live as Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs on Wednesday (4 December) as his reset Brexit plans suffer another blow. The prime minister looks set to lose another key ally in a blow to his plans to reset the UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the European Union. Michel Barnier looks likely to be ousted as French prime minister on Wednesday in a no-confidence motion after he pushed through a controversial budget without a vote.
Hello!
The reason why Princess Kate missed palace banquet after royal reappearance
The Princess of Wales did not attend the Qatar state banquet with the royals, despite welcoming the Emir with Prince William on Tuesday morning
OK! Magazine
Melanie Sykes says Gregg Wallace was the reason she quit TV as she brands MasterChef 'unprofessional'
Melanie Sykes has claimed that Gregg Wallace was one of the reasons which led to her stepping back from TV, after she appeared on Celebrity MasterChef and found the show 'unprofessional'.
Hello!
Great British Sewing Bee star Sara Pascoe hits back at Gregg Wallace live on air
Great British Sewing Bee star Sara Pascoe appeared on Lorraine, where she hit back at Gregg Wallace's recent comments about the women who have accused him of inappropriate behaviour.
BuzzFeed
"It Annoyed Me To No End": Americans Who Lived Abroad Are Sharing The Biggest Reverse Culture Shock They Had When Moving Back Home
"Depending on where you lived abroad, the return to this is probably going to be the biggest shock."
Cosmo
Rita Ora frees the nip at Fashion Awards afterparty in mesh cut-out dress
After wearing a custom Primark suit to The 2024 Fashion Awards, Rita Ora donned a comic strip dress with sheer mesh cut-outs to free the nip for the afterparty.
Storyful
Alligator Seen Dragging Enormous Python Stuns Tour Guides in Florida's Everglades
Visitors to Florida’s Everglades National Park in late November were stunned to see an alligator swimming with its catch – a huge Burmese python that may be the largest ever found in the area.Video filmed by Kelly Alvarez from the Shark Valley Observation Tower shows the alligator with the dead, bloated, and partially eaten python in its maw.“That’s so gnarly, that’s so cool,” Alvarez says in the video.Alvarez, who is a tour guide in the Everglades, told Storyful she believed the alligator in the video was “one of the largest” seen in the national park, but the invasive python was much longer.“The record for longest python found in the Florida Everglades is 19 feet. Given that this alligator is minimum 10 feet, though I estimate him to be more around 12 feet, this python being twice his size is now quite possibly the longest Burmese python ever found in Everglades National Park,” Alvarez told Storyful.In the video, another tour guide can be heard saying, “You know it’s something serious when it’s something we [tour guides] haven’t seen before.” Credit: Kelly Alvarez via Storyful

Latest stories