A THEATRE company will treat audiences to an impromptu panto to raise money for a Blackbird Leys charity.

For three nights this weekend, Oxford Comedy Deathmatch (OCD) will submit to the will of the audience and create a pantomime on the spot for hundreds of people.

Each night a member of the audience will pull out the name of a panto from an envelope before actors take to the stage to perform anything from Cinderella and Aladdin to Snow White and Puss in Boots.

Pathway Workshop, based in Dunnock Way, Blackbird Leys, is the first charity to benefit from the group’s shows. The workshop offers employment and training for people with physical disabilities, learning disabilities or mental health issues who create hand-made garden furniture, planters and other wood products Jenny Sugden, a member of OCD, said: “We found out that Pathway doesn’t get any subsidy at all from the Government so we thought if we could raise funds by making people laugh it would be really worth it.  “Pathway is a great charity and we are delighted to be doing something we love and helping to raise money for such a good cause at the same time.”

OCD is made up of 12 local actors and comedians who stage improvised comedy in the style of Channel Four’s Whose Line is it Anyway?

The group has been performing at the Folly Bridge Inn in Oxford for more than a year and has built up a sizable local fanbase.

Pathway director Mike Kyle said: “They are doing the performances out of the goodness of their hearts.

“The money raised could pay a disadvantaged adult a decent living wage for up to three months this year.

“Pathway wants to give its staff a brighter future and if people buy tickets for the panto this will really help.”

The panto will be held at the Moser Theatre at Wadham College, in Park Street, Oxford, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7pm.

Tickets are £5 full price and £3 for children under 12.

* You can buy tickets online in advance at comedydeathmatch.com or facebook.com/oxfordcomedy deathmatch. To donate see pathway-workshop.co.uk