Let's remind ourselves of the 2015 review of her last panto....
At the top of the bill is TV personality Katie Price as the evil fairy 'Malevolence' (it appears 'Maleficent' was copyrighted...). Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Every time she set foot on the stage, I found myself cringing into my seat at her excessive pouting and smouldering which was all Katie, and no 'Malevolence'. The good news is, she was able to make a joke about herself and her many books, marriages and Page 3 career, but that's really about it. She didn't know any of the choreography her fellow cast mates knew thoroughly; she just swayed from side-to-side during the dance numbers, and when she did attempt to follow the odd dance move, she just looked so uncomfortable. Futhermore, her 'singing' was all mimed - and badly too. I can't even say if it was her pre-recorded voice or someone else's... She lip-synced her way through 'Black Magic' by Little Mix, turning her back on the audience on more than one occasion so we couldn't see her face. I'm pretty sure this was to cover the fact that she didn't know the words...
The role of 'Malevolence' will be taken over by Anita Dobson from 28th December, and while I can't guarantee she'll be any better than Price, she certainly couldn't be much worse, so maybe wait until then to see this panto!
However, it turns out the lip-sync showing might have been a saving grace.
Brave Katie reportedly did try to sing live a bit opening the second half with a screeching performance of Little Mix’s Black Magic.
Sadly, the reviewer remained unimpressed, adding: “It was very obvious she was singing live the second time. Very obvious!”
The Stage reviews of the production go even further, saying: "It's obvious that Price has the capacity for self-parody, but sadly not the talent.
"[Her] wooden delivery is matched by an awkward physicality and the almost imperceptible hiss of a digital track being switched on indicates that live vocals are probably not a forte either."