Comedian John Bishop and veteran actor Sir Ian McKellen head the cast

The West End production of panto Mother Goose starring comedian John Bishop and Lord of The Rings star Sir Ian McKellen is heading to Bristol.

Fresh from an acclaimed run in London this Christmas, the show will become a springtime treat for audiences at the Bristol Hippodrome in April.

The family-friendly production stars Sir Ian as Mother Goose and John Bishop is her husband Vic Goose, who run an animal sanctuary for waifs and strays and live a wholesome life inside an abandoned Debenhams store.

But when Cilla The Goose (played by West End star Anna-Jane Casey) flies in, will fame and fortune get the better of them?

Mother Goose also stars Oscar Conlon-Morrey as Jack, Simbi Akande as Jill, Sharon Ballard as Good Fairy Encanta and Karen Mavundukure as Evil Fairy Malignia. The cast is completed by Mairi Barclay, Adam Brown, Gabriel Fleary, Becca Francis, Shailan Gohil, Richard Leeming, Genevieve Nicole and Laura Tyrer.

It is written by Jonathan Harvey (Coronation Street, Gimme Gimme Gimme) and directed by award-winning director Cal McCrystal.

Sir Ian, 83, first made his panto debut in Aladdin at the Ipswich Arts Theatre in 1962. He went on to star in several Shakespeare plays as well as countless films and TV shows including the part of Magneto in the X-Men films and Gandalf in The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit.