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ROBIN Hood and his merry men certainly stole the limelight when the panto came roaring back to the stage in Buckie.

It marked the 65th year of pantos being performed in the town and once again Buckie Community Theatre can congratulate themselves on another triumph.

Months of hard work and toil by the performers and the backstage crew came together beautifully in a stunning series of performances over Thursday, February 2 to Saturday, February 4 which left audiences wowed. Tickets sales were strong from the start, with the Saturday matinee selling out very quickly and very few left for the other performances in the days before the curtain went up.

There was a change of venue for the panto this year, with the shows being held in the North Church Hall.

Adding to the atmosphere was an invitation for youngsters to dress up as Robin Hood or Maid Marian and be invited up onto the stage to try their hand at the Golden Arrow competition.

Having excelled last year in Mother Goose, Claire Macleod and Ellie Coull took a deserved step up to leading roles as Robin and Maid Marian respectively.

There was a novel twist when it came to the villains of the piece with the Sheriff of Nottingham being joined by an evil pal in the quest for power. It was a double act which smashed it, with theatre group stalwart Pauline Macintosh drawing the boos and hisses from the audience as the Mad Sheriff alongside Gemma Archibald as the witch Mortanna.

They were assisted, albeit with increasing unwillingness, by Guy of Gisborne (Janette Mitchell).

Countering Mortann's evil influence while making sure Robin was persuaded to do the right thing and go toe to toe with the Sheriff was the Spirit of Sherwood (Holly Allardice). Holly juggled this with her off-stage role as musical director.

There was another twist to be had in the ranks of Robin's Merry Men with Little John morphing into an equally formidable, guard-bashing Little Joan (Sara Chiappi).

She fought the good fight along with the rest of the gang – the less than modest but nevertheless committed Will Scarlett (Danya Smith), Alan-a-Dale (Denna Whyte)Much (Brandon McArthur) and the priest with a punch Friar Tuck (Kasia Heywood).

Having none of their evil uncle's machinations were the Sheriff's orphaned nephew Tommy (Isaac Findlay) and niece Tammy (Ellie Sumner).

There's never any shortage of laughter when Kevin Oakes is on stage and so it was once again when he played the nun with a dodgy past, a pithy wit and a heart of gold, Sister Matic.

Writing in the show's programme in his role as artistic director and writer Kevin Oakes said: "We as a group are extremely proud of this year's panto and are delighted to be performing in our new venue of the North Church Hall, a focal point of our community.

"This is the 65th year that the group have been performing pantomimes for our community and are delighted to be performing this wonderful tale of how an ordinary person find the courage to become the hero of the day.

"We began rehearsals back in September 2022 and what a journey we have had! We have had lots of laughs and what has become apparent is no matter what we as a group have had to deal with, nothing will break us, we are a family and a team and I personally have made some of the closest friends ever!

"Buckie Community Theatre is not just about the amazing cast...but all the backstage team.Without their support we would not be able to perform our shows, from the amazing lady who has made our costumes to all the parents and families who have devoted their time, the list is endless.

"I would like to thank everyone who has helped bring this magical performance to life."

While the theatre group can now enjoy a well-earned rest it will soon be time for them to gather again and being work on next year's extravaganza.

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