Anne Hegerty ready to star at the Wyvern Theatre this Christmas

The Chase star Anne Hegerty is ready to star at the Wyvern Theatre this Christmas as Swindon prepares itself for an epic recreation of Beauty and the Beast full of laughs, sing-songs, and plenty of ‘behind you’ shouts from the audience.

Arriving in Swindon for her 10th pantomime production of her career, the former I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here contestant is adamant this will be her best performance yet after some early career bloopers.

Hegerty is perhaps best-known for her time on ITV’s quiz show The Chase where she has garnered a reputation for being one of the sternest quiz masters in her role as ‘The Governess’. However the 64-year-old will be showing a different side to her televised personality when she takes to the stage as Fairy Flutterby.

Commenting on her transition from beginner to panto pro, Hegerty highlighted issues that plagued her during her early theatre days: ‘It is [my 10th panto], you think I’d be better by now but I’m sort of stumbling through it,’ joked the star.

‘I’m better than I was when I did my first panto, I do not know what I was doing, I was missing cues, one understands one has a line here and your mind just wondered. I will try not to do that again.

‘One problem I have is that I can't dance. People have gradually learnt better than to put me in a dance routine, unless the fact I can't dance is the point of the routine it will be a sad sight. I have got better at picking up cues and being technically better.

Hegerty has been a household name since joining Bradley Walsh on The Chase in 2010, and has seen her showbiz stock rise further after entering the Jungle in 2018. But despite a hugely successful career in television, she admits that performing on stage is completely different.

‘In some ways it does help [being on tv] but television and theatre can be quite different. It's more doing The Chase is different from panto.

‘That involves more stuff and just sort of realising not just on stage you can't retake anything, more on stage your on your own and if you have a coughing fit there isn't someone to say cut, would you like a glass of water? They just let you go ahead and cough.

‘There was one time in Windsor and I was singing after eating some chocolate with nuts in not long before and I had this massive coughing fit.

‘It was only after I finished that was the show Elton John had been in to see so I will never be famous now. It's just the shame. I'm better than I was, I hope people enjoy it because I am surrounded by a fantastic cast.

The Wyvern Theatre’s festive pantomime showing of Beauty and the Beast gets underway on Saturday 3rd December with tickets on sale and available HERE.