Panto is a family business in more ways than one

Andy Gray, pictured with Grant Stott, had been one of the stars at Edinburgh's King's Theatre pantomime for years

Panto is often an emotional experience for so many reasons, but Sleeping Beauty at the Kings in Edinburgh has an added poignancy this year as a tribute to veteran panto performer Andy Gray.

It is impossible as the lights dim, the chatter subsides and the band strikes up, to halt the sights, smells and sounds of Christmas past.

For me, it was school trips to the Kings in Glasgow, where Stanley Baxter reigned supreme.

And I remember my own short-lived stint in panto with the local am dram company.

Pauline (far right in white dress) during her short-lived panto career

A brief turn in the chorus line, and then backstage to finish my homework.

Later I introduced my own child to the world of panto - and his dad who managed to miss it all as a youngster.

For one glorious afternoon, three generations of our family went to the panto together. Oh yes we did.

It turned out to be the last ever show by Gerard Kelly, who died suddenly the same year.

The laughter and warmth of that show is still vivid 11 years on but it is tempered with the absence of so many of those we have lost.

Two years ago, Andy Gray returned to the stage of the Kings Theatre in Edinburgh after illness.

The roar of the audience - was matched only by the grins of the dancers who introduced him in the midst of a Vegas style song and dance routine, dedicated to A-N-D-Y - Andy.

He, and his co-stars Allan Stewart and Grant Stott, had become one of the biggest panto attractions. A showbusiness triumvirate.

So when Andy died of Covid in January, it was a huge blow. Not just to the audience, but to his family and friends. Like most panto productions, it's a close knit crew and there are as many families onstage and behind the scenes as there are out front in the theatre.

Among them Clare Gray, Andy's daughter, who appeared in the 2019 show - admittedly unrecognisable as one of three bears - and is back this year as Narcissa in Sleeping Beauty.

Clare Gray in Kings Panto in Edinburgh

She says: "There have been some tough moments obviously, coming into the theatre for the first time was quite difficult, but it's been lovely and the audience's reaction every night is another reminder of how amazing my dad was."

Clare says she felt it was important the show went on for families like hers - she has a three year old daughter - and for those who've been coming to see her dad's shows for years and years.

Long-time acting partner Grant Stott says Andy, like many people, did not get a proper send off at his funeral because of Covid restrictions.

Limited numbers at a private service and no chance for those who simply knew him from afar to say goodbye.

So this year amid the songs and the silliness, there's a quiet toast to the panto king who made so many people laugh - and cry.

"We wanted to give the audience the moment because Andy was part of their Christmas for many years," says Grant.

"We feel we are making up for Andy not getting the funeral he deserved by letting everyone who loved him so much come to the panto and have that moment."

So much has changed since last year. Not just the losses, and the missing faces, but the business itself.

Jordan Young and Allan Stewart in Kings panto in Edinburgh

Last year, the only shows were online, at least this side of the Border.

And while panto is back in Scotland, companies have to anticipate sudden changes in the rules which could set them back again. That, and the constant worry about cast and crew catching Covid or having to self isolate.

There are no sweets thrown into the auditorium, they don't "bring down the cloot" for a singalong, and most of the audience are behind masks.

But there's still a magic to it all. The tiny girl on her mother's lap, transfixed by the can-can dancers, the row of elderly women, still in their winter coats, clapping along, or the group of middle-aged ladies dancing in the aisle amid a shower of glitter.

And it's not just Andy Gray for whom this show is a fond farewell. Like Sleeping Beauty, this historic theatre is also being put to sleep, not for 100 years, but at least for the next few to allow a multi-million pound refurbishment to take place.

Until then, the panto will move to Edinburgh festival theatre. Traditions, memories and ghosts of pantos past, waiting in the wings for their return.