'Robin Hood' review — Julian Clary steals the show with his smut

Read our review of Robin Hood, starring Julian Clary, Jane McDonald, Nigel Havers, Marisha Wallace, Charlie Stemp, and Rob Madge, now in performances at the London Palladium through 12 January.

The London Palladium pantomime follows a tried-and-tested formula every year: smutty jokes, check; extravagant costumes, check; a starry cast including Palladium favourites Julian Clary, Nigels Havers, and ventriloquist Paul Zerdin, check, check, check. This year, Clary takes on the lead role of Robin Hood for the first time, putting his own camp spin on the heroic outlaw and dwarfing everything else in the process — even the fabulous backdrops and thrilling special effects.

This Robin Hood would be better titled The Julian Clary Show. Even though the cast is bursting with talent, from Olivier Award nominee Marisha Wallace to musical theatre favourite Charlie Stemp and guest star Jane McDonald, it is Clary who draws us in with his eye-popping costumes (the giant owl and castle complete with turrets and flags are stand-out designs) and naughty humour. His jokes are so near the knuckle that audiences were left open-mouthed on press night with one comment about 73-year-old Nigel Havers being “the poster boy for the assisted dying campaign”. Clary also goes after Keir Starmer and former Masterchef presenter Gregg Wallace — though most of his jokes remain classic Clary smut.

He delights in roasting those both off and on stage, with one of the ensemble even wheeling out a genius ‘audience cam’ to pick off unsuspecting theatregoers. In this venue, no one is safe. Even the kids (there is the odd child scattered throughout the auditorium) are singled out by the take-no-prisoners Clary, who lobs sweets at them to “fulfil his contractual agreement”.

More variety show than panto, there is virtually no plot to speak of, save for a strange archery competition, the abduction of Maid Marion, and a shotgun wedding. But do we care? No! As the Spirit of Sherwood, Rob Madge helps to keep proceedings somewhat on track, delighting the audience with a joyful take on “Hello, Dolly!” complete with dancing waiters in a lovely nod to the venue’s summer musical Hello, Dolly!, starring Imelda Staunton.

Marisha Wallace, as the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham, once again proves her vocal chops, even performing that vocal riff from Wicked’s “Defying Gravity”. She masters the evil cackle but otherwise lacks the menace needed to pull off the panto baddie. McDonald is a brilliant brassy, gobby Maid Marion, and a very comfortable addition as a Palladium newcomer. Stemp as Alan-a-dale and Tosh Wanogho-Maud as Little John are a spirited pair of Merry Men, and Nigel Havers once again graciously accepts being the butt of all jokes as the doddery Friar Tuck. Paul Zerdin is excellent as Will Scarlet, keeping the audience entertained between scene changes with his puppet Sam — one skit in which he keeps switching voices with his puppet is particularly good fun. There’s even a cameo appearance from Palladium panto regular Gary Wilmot, though the moment is so fleeting, blink and you’ll miss him.

There is no shortage of surprises, courtesy of visual special effects team, The Twins FX. Watch out for one moment that rivals the flying DeLorean in Back to the Future, as well as an epic fire-breathing dragon. Duncan McLean’s 3D film section is inspired and leads to more than one shriek from the audience. The sets are sumptuously designed by Mark Walters, like the inside of an illustrated children’s book, with sweeping vines, outsized bows and arrows, and a giant fairytale castle.

The Palladium panto should be a genre in its own right. There are many of the hallmarks of a traditional panto here — the show is full of razzmatazz, double entendre, and an eye-watering amount of spectacle — but it is a truly unique theatrical experience. You’ll certainly leave feeling merry.

Robin Hood is at the London Palladium through 12 January 2025. Check back for tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk

Photo credit: Julian Clary and Jane McDonald in Robin Hood. (Photo by Paul Coltas)