The cast members of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs paid an early visit to Nottingham this week as they officially launched this year’s Theatre Royal family pantomime.

Following the hugely successful return of Birds of a Feather to our television screens earlier this year, one of the nation’s best-loved actresses Lesley Joseph will star as The Wicked Queen – pantomime’s ultimate villain. Joining Lesley onstage is EastEnders heartthrob and Dancing on Ice 2011 champion Sam Attwater as The Prince.

Lesley has starred in numerous plays and musicals, in the West End and on tour, including Calendar Girls, Thoroughly Modern Millie and Annie, as well as countless television and radio programmes. On television she has appeared in Night and Day, What Not to Wear, My Bare Lady, Ready, Steady, Cook, and Celebrity Come Dine With Me.

Sam was the winner of the sixth series of ITV1’s Dancing on Ice in 2011. He landed his first television role playing Ricky in Hollyoaks in 2009. In January 2010 he joined the cast of EastEnders and its online spin-off EastEnders: E20 playing the character Leon Small. Sam has also starred in West End musicals including Tonight’s the Night and 20th Century Boy, and has recently released his debut EP, ‘Breaking Boundaries.’

Back by popular demand Ben Nickless (last year’s critically acclaimed Mr Smee) returns to the Theatre Royal to play the hapless Muddles, alongside one of the theatre’s most popular pantomime Dames, Andrew Ryan, who will play The Nurse.

Jonathan Kiley, executive producer of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, said: “We are delighted that Lesley and Sam, two pre-eminent figures in the world of entertainment, will lead the cast of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Guaranteed to be another action-packed and must-see Theatre Royal Nottingham pantomime, the show will feature comedy, fabulous sets, and outrageous costumes and, as Theatre Royal Nottingham audiences have come to expect, surprises galore along the way!”

The Theatre Royal’s Director of Sales, Marketing and Development, Jonathan Saville, said: “We are delighted to see such a strong and talented cast announced for this year’s pantomime. We’ve been lucky enough to have Lesley, Ben and Andrew perform here in pantomime before and we know that our family audiences absolutely love them, or love to hate them in the case of our fabulously Wicked Queen, of course!

“There will be many surprises in store with this production, too, with some quite astonishing special effects and physical performance theatre. It’s definitely not going to be one you’ll want to miss.”

Staged by the same team behind last year’s record-breaking production of Peter Pan and presented by Qdos Entertainment, the world’s largest pantomime producer, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs will have the Theatre Royal’s hallmark of value-for-money and outstanding entertainment for all ages.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs runs from Saturday, 6th December to Sunday, 11th January 2015. Tickets start from £15, with concessions and group discounts available, and can booked on 0115 989 5555 or online at www.trch.co.uk