Meet the Morley Town Crier celebrating 50 years on stage as Dick Whittington pantomime returns to Leeds

68-year-old Steven Holt, a retired British Gas worker, is an old hand at entertaining audiences after 49 years treading the boards in amateur theatre.

Although founded in 1927, Morley Amateur Operatic Society presented their first ever pantomime, Dick Whittington, in 1974 and remarkably, Steven has performed in every Morley Pantomime since.

Speaking to the YEP, Steven said: “I love pantomime, I love the slapstick nature and musical element. I think audiences will get what they are expecting – plenty of slapstick, family fun comedy and the opportunity to get involved emotionally as well.

“To see everything click on the night and linking together is just so rewarding. This is always where the excitement starts to build – little bit of nervousness of course, even after 50 years you always get that feeling in the pit of your stomach as you make your first entrance. But I think you need that mix of excitement, nervous and adrenaline.”

Steven played the part of Idle Jack in Morley Amateur’s debut production in 1974. He first took to the stage as Dame in 1998 when he performed as Widow Twankie in Aladdin and has performed as Dame ever since. In this year’s show he will be taking on the part of Sarah the Cook.

In addition to his theatre commitments, Steven took on the role of Morley Town Crier during 2020 and has since travelled the country to compete. He has also been known to help out as Father Christmas, delighting hundreds of children with appearances for several charity events.

He added: “I made my first cry outside Morley Town Hall in July 2020 announcing the re-opening of Morley shops, and thanking the NHS and all the workers in essential services that we all became even more dependent upon.

“It’s all unpaid but I really enjoy just being part of the community. Same with my Santa engagements – I get a small amount for the Morley lights switch-on but any community visit, school visit etc I would never dream of charging for that.”

Celebrating 50 years of pantomime, Morley Amateur’s will be presenting Dick Whittington at Morley Town Hall from January 25-28. Tickets for this family-friendly performance can be booked online.