A TOTAL of 1200 theatre lovers will be able to watch Mayflower Theatre's socially distanced panto for free this Christmas thanks to a huge National Lottery giveaway which gets under way today.

Starring Joe Pasquale and Lesley Joseph, Sleeping Beauty is a specially created, one-act production which opens on Saturday December 19.

To take up the offer, National Lottery players will need to log onto the Mayflower Theatre website and visit the Ticket Giveaway page. Players will need to be available for any performance as specific performances cannot be selected. An online queuing system will be in place and, once through, the players can select their bubble number of tickets and those lucky enough to have registered in time will be notified if they are successful.

Tickets will be available on a first come first served basis from 10am today and players will need to present a valid National Lottery ticket alongside their pantomime tickets when attending the theatre.

Sleeping Beauty will be packed full of comedy routines, audience-safe participation and all the unmissable magic that Southampton audiences have come to expect from their annual festive pantomime. The Mayflower Theatre auditorium will be fully-reconfigured to allow for social distancing between audience parties, with staggered entry times and entry checks for all audience members to ensure their safety at all times.

Michael Ockwell, Mayflower Theatre Chief Executive said, “We’re delighted to join up with The National Lottery to offer their players the chance to win free tickets to see our production of Sleeping Beauty this Christmas. We are thrilled to be able to provide audiences with festive entertainment during what has been a challenging time for the sector and we are incredibly grateful to The National Lottery for their support, without which we would not have been able to proceed.”

Former King of the Jungle and TV funnyman Joe Pasquale will lead the cast of Sleeping Beauty as Muddles. He is joined by Birds of a Feather favourite Lesley Joseph, female impersonator Ceri Dupree and musical theatre leading lady Sarah Earnshaw in the show, which runs for two weeks. Georgia Carr, a graduate of Mayflower Theatre's Summer Youth Projects, will play Sleeping Beauty.

Tickets are on sale now.