AS THE nation celebrated this week the news that George Osbourne had reversed his decision on cutting tax credits, Oran Mor’s panto team pulled some rather long faces.

Frances Thorburn, who stars in Ali Bawbag and the Forty Tealeafs, smiles as she explains the reaction.

“Part of our panto plot line was about Ali being poor because of the tax credits cuts.

“But then came George Osbourne’s u-turn this week and this means a re-write to explain Ali’s poverty.

“However, we’ve come up with a new plot line and now it’s in great shape.”

The grown up children who form the Play, Pie and a Pint panto audience won’t be overly concerned with the plot detail.

What they know is they will have fun and the chance to see fairy tale classic Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves entirely trashed (sorry, re-written cleverly with comedy and political satire).

As you can imagine, the story is not set in ancient Baghdad but somewhere a little closer to home, perhaps Bargeddie.

The cast sees Dave Anderson, George Drennan, Anita Vettesse and Frances all become professionally schizophrenic for the length of the run, playing a range of roles.

“Except me,” says Frances, smiling. “The others play men, women, the lot, but I’m just Ali Bawbag.

“This means I don’t have the worry of the costume changes. But the other side of that is I’m on stage most of the time.”

Frances is one of Scotland’s most accomplished stage actors, having attracted great reviews in a range of work, from playing Marilyn Monroe to Cinderella and appearing at the prestigious Globe Theatre.

But each of the cast bring far more than a massive enthusiasm for the Oran Mor panto season, which is so successful all on-line tickets have now been sold. (An allocation can be bought at the door, but be quick.)

The cast are also talented musicians and indeed Frances is a professional singer with an incredible jazz voice and set to sing at charity concert for Cancer UK, accompanied by David Farrell, at Glasgow Cathedral on December 3,

Meantime, the actress, is loving being part of the mad, mad world of panto.

“In Ali Baba, the original story is quite complex and it doesn’t really go anywhere so writers Dave Anderson and Gary McNair have had a challenge on their hands turning it into panto.”

Not half. One day, Ali is in the woods (don’t ask) when he sees a (budget) band of robbers.

The leader says a magic password and a boulder rolls away from a rock face. Ali discovers, after they’ve gone, a cave full of riches, and his life is never the same again.

A strange tale unfolds, involving Ali’s greedy brother, his aspirational wife, the band of robbers, and more besides.

“When Ali finds the cave he takes some of the treasure, but and the other brother takes and takes and takes. And then someone dies.”

It’s not sounding so cheery at the moment, Frances.

“Maybe that’s the original I’m talking about,” she says Frances, laughing.

“Anyway, it will be great fun. There are lots of elements of panto, some politics and a wee bit of darkness. But not too much.

“And there are lots of wives running around, who sort of sort out the problems.”

But how to play Ali? Is he a Glasgow ned?

“Not really,” says Frances, who’s hoping to reappear in hit musical comedy Doris and Dolly next year.

“He’s more an ordinary wee Glasgow guy, who’s a woodcutter, who’s just a bit down on his luck.”

Are there many Glasgow woodcutters out there?

“No, and that’s exactly why he’s got financial problems,” says Frances, grinning. “Woodcutting is something of a dying trade.”

Frances, who has been working recently at the Ayr Gaiety in a new Burns celebration and is looking to record a new album of her own music next year adds; “It feels it a little odd to be playing one role this year.

“And I look around me an George is a Baddie and he plays Frank’s wife, Dave is the Dame, and he’s my wife, and Anita plays my brother Frank - and one of the Baddies.

“But that’s panto.”

And there has to be a moral to the story?

“Yes, it’s about greed. It’s about how money isn’t that important.”

Unless of course you’re on tax credits and the Government plans to remove them?

“Exactly,” says Frances, smiling.

• Ali Bawbag and the Forty Tealeafs, Oran Mor, until Saturday.