In the 1930s, the four of us children were taken to the pantomime at the New Theatre, Oxford, by my mother.

It was the only time each year that we visited a theatre and was therefore a special treat.

My mother would always book us into the row of seats in the stalls which, in those days, had a wide aisle in front.

The reason for this was that during the main interval, it was customary for those who played such characters as Puss in Boots or Dick Whittington’s cat to come down from the stage to talk to us. This made the afternoon particularly special.

Ann Spokes Symonds
Davenant Road
Oxford