VIDEO: They're behind you! Bradford panto stars visit children's hospital ward

Bradford’s own prince of pantomime and king of comedy Billy Pearce, who plays Muddles in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, put in a sequin dazzled appearance on Ward Two at Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI) yesterday, with fellow cast members including X-Factor winner Joe McElderry who plays The Spirit of the Mirror.

The visit brought plenty of smiles to children, families and staff on the ward as the actors in full costume handed out gifts, making time to joke and chat.

Even wicked Queen Sadista, played by Jenny Gayner, was on her best behaviour telling youngsters she had taken a nice tablet to be especially pleasant with everyone and was thinking of trimming her long talons because it was impossible to pick up sweeties thrown out to the panto audience.

Sabah Gul, 11, from Thornbury was excited to meet Prince Benedict, actor David O'Mahoney, while waiting for a head scan and a fibre optic light sabre from the Wicked Queen took four-year-old Jackson Hardy's mind of his dog bite.

His mum Holly Hardy, from Pudsey, said: "We didn't expect visitors on the ward - it was a real surprise!"

And they were familiar faces for Adam Hussain, ten, a pupil at Undercliffe's Westminster Primary School, because he had already seen them in the show with his classmates.

Ward Two manager David Menebhi, who has worked at the hospital trust for 26 years, said: "This annual visit is always something we look forward to. It lightens the day."

Billy Pearce is a veteran visitor to BRI. He said: "This must be the sixth year we've been doing this, I think. We love it.

"What's really great is when some of the children we've visited on the ward in past years get well enough to come and see us again at the Alhambra."

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has another two-and-a-half-weeks to run and has already sold more tickets than the city's panto production had this time last year. Curtains will rise and fall for the final time on January 25.

Special effects and illusions including a flying car which travels over the heads of the audience below are doing their bit to make ticket sales soar.

Tickets from £12.50 to £34 are still available either by contacting the Box Office on 01274 432000 or visiting bradford-theatres.co.uk.