Blackpool Grand Theatre has joined forces with Blackpool Transport once again for the popular ‘books on buses’ scheme with 250 copies of Grimm’s Fairy Tales on offer for lucky passengers, featuring the spellbinding literary tale of this year’s pantomime Cinderella.

Blackpool Grand Theatre is offering enchanting bedtime reading for families across the resort with the welcome return of the famous ‘books on buses’ scheme on Blackpool Transport’s fleet of buses, as part of the theatre’s annual community literacy project.

The Grand has teamed up with Blackpool Transport once again to offer passengers a fabulous opportunity to read one of 250 FREE copies of the Grimm’s Fairy Tales books on selected bus routes this December, featuring the magical tale of Cinderella, which is this year’s fun-packed pantomime at The Grand.

What a novel way to sprinkle a little pantomime magic across the resort!

The Grand’s star-studded panto cast also hopped onto Cinderella’s very own Blackpool Transport bus to travel to Westcliff Primary Academy in Bispham this week to officially launch this year’s literacy partnership. There were lots of fun and frolics for lucky pupils from the school as they jumped on the bus as it parked at the school gates to enjoy reading the pumpkin-packed tale with Cinderella herself, along with TV sensation Hayley Tamaddon who plays the fabulous Fairy Godmother and top panto and stand-up comedy star Steve Royle who plays Buttons!

Westcliff Primary Academy Headteacher, Amanda Stokes, said: “It was so fabulous for some of our children to meet the Cinderella cast and each receive a book which all the cast signed. We take all the children from Year 1 to Year 6 to the pantomime at The Grand every year, so it was a magical experience for them! One of our Year 5 pupils, Layla, was so thrilled with her signed book she said, ‘I’m going to dive into this tonight!”

Blackpool Grand is continuing its successful collaboration with Blackpool Transport to encourage youngsters to enjoy reading classic books as part of the theatre’s ongoing mission to boost literacy across the whole of the resort. This comes as the National Literacy Trust launches its Annual Literacy Survey of children and young people to explore literacy behaviours, attitudes and enjoyment. Findings from the 2024 survey discovered that the percentage of children and young people who enjoyed reading was at its lowest level since the survey began in 2005 – with just 1 in 3 children aged 8 to 18 saying they enjoyed reading in their free time. Reading enjoyment levels have decreased by 8.8 percentage points over the past year alone, with only 1 in 5 school age children reading something daily in their free time – the lowest levels recorded since 2005.

Chief Executive at Blackpool Grand Theatre, Adam Knight, said: “The Grand Theatre is immensely proud to support the local community through a variety of exciting initiatives and we’re delighted to team up with Blackpool Transport once again to help steer the popular annual literacy partnership to success once more this Christmas!

“Our literacy programme is one of many campaigns designed to help inspire children and learners of all ages to fall in love with reading again and to connect with timeless stories, so we were thrilled to visit Westcliff Primary Academy to officially launch the project this year and see the excitement on the children’s faces as they enjoyed the pure joy of storytelling! We hope families across the resort read and enjoy the books on their journeys and then join us at the theatre this December, where our spectacular pantomime cast will bring these tales to life in a festive, fun-filled performance!”

Jane Cole, Managing Director of Blackpool Transport Services, added: “We’re thrilled to once again bring stories to life on our buses this festive season. Partnering with our friends at the Grand, we’re spreading a little cheer across the Fylde Coast by sharing these wonderful tales. Whether enjoyed onboard with us or at home, we hope they add a touch of magic during this special time of year.”

Cinderella’s captivating tale of magic, mayhem and misunderstandings stars TV sensation Hayley Tamaddon (Dancing on Ice, Emmerdale) sprinkling seasonal magic as The Fairy Godmother; top panto and stand-up comedy star Steve Royle as Buttons; dazzling Dame duo Jamie Morris & Tarot Joseph as the gorgeous Ugly Sisters; TikTok sensation and stage star Kitty Harris (Burlesque the Musical, Chicago) as Cinderella, and West End favourite Mark Faith (Mary Poppins, Dirty Dancing) as Baron Hardup, along with talented stage stars Toby Turpin (Cabaret, Anything Goes) as Prince Charming and Sam Ebenezer (The Mousetrap, Choir of Man) as Dandini, all live on the Grand Theatre’s famous stage.

The countdown to Cinderella’s ball has begun… this is one fairytale ending you won’t want to miss!

Cinderella runs from Friday 6 December 2024 until Monday 5 January 2025 at Blackpool Grand Theatre and will be promoted across the bus signage and video screens to promote the performances.

Please call the Box Office on 01253 290190 or visit www.BlackpoolGrand.co.uk for bookings and further information. Matinee and evening performances available.

• Accessible performances will also be available, with an extra special relaxed pantomime performance on          Sunday 29 December at 5pm.

Book your seats now before you miss out! Limited availability for some performances!