IT WAS never a question of 'if', but 'when' John Barrowman would take off his panto costume and head towards the exit.

For the past five years, the performer has wowed audiences at the SECC, and this year has been no exception, with Cinderella proving John and the Krankies are a match made in panto heaven.

Of course, John won't be back next year, such are his appearance commitments across the globe, performing in shows from Montreal to Dallas.

And there's no guarantee the Krankies will be back either.

However the Glasgow-born star, who plays the love struck Buttons in Cinderella, knows his SECC stint has been a masterclass in comedy.

"They are great to work with," he says of the Krankies, Janette and Ian Tough.

"And every night when they are on stage I sit in the wings and watch them. I never go backstage to my dressing room."

John adds; "I just sit and watch their comedy routines, learning, seeing how they get laughs, watching every single thing they do.

"I'm a co-director in the show, and it makes sense for me to learn. But it's been great for me, personally."

The alchemy of Barrowman and the Krankies has produced great audience reaction. Pairing the comedy duo with a musical theatre star didn't seem to be a winning combination, but producer Michael Harrison's casting has been inspired.

There is always something special going on with John and Janette on stage.

"There is, trust me there is," he says, laughing, referring to the fact the pair don't just get great comedy from the script, but from the ad-libbing going on.

And that can only happen when there's an underlying friendship.

"You might not always see it but it's always going on."

And sometimes you do. The pair are like a couple of mischievous schoolboys at time. In the skit Twelve Days of Christmas, John likes to hide Jimmy Krankies pashwari nans. The result? Minor chaos. And the kids in the audience love chaos.

"It's heightened stupidity," he says laughing.

There are also occasions when John will pick up his co-star, in little unscripted moments, and spin her around.

And this with a 67 year-old woman, who should probably know better.

"It's a trust thing," he says. "If I suggest to her something she'll go with it."

John hasn't been part of the SECC for five years for the pay packet.

"I don't do anything for the money these days," he admits. "I earn a good living."

"I have done jobs in the past for money and hated it. But I've been doing panto because I love it.

"And if I were asked to do this for a quarter of what I get I would do it to work with the Krankies.

"I work very hard for what I earn and if I didn't love what I do I wouldn't do it."

But it's time to take a break. And John Barrowman knows when it's time to move forward. What drives him forward is a challenge.

"I truly love what I do. And if you told me tomorrow it was all going to stop, I would be gutted."

The star who grew up in America has worked hard to develop several strings to his bow.

His musical theatre talent has bled into acting. His singing talent has resulted in another new, successful album. Indeed, he's a throwback to the variety stars of yesteryear; he's Sammy Davis Junior, but rather better looking and with a hybrid Scots accent.

"I want to do it all," he says. "That's the entertainment business. And if you're a plumber you don't just plumb sinks. You do toilets and showers.

"I grew up with variety and I was trained by variety. And these people told me not to limit myself. They told me how to create work.

"That's why when I was out of work in the States after doing a TV show that failed I created my own cabaret show, to keep on working.

"I'm not going to sit back and wait for my manager to call."

John Barrowman takes a Darwinist approach to his career. He sees opportunities like a monkey sees hanging branches on a tree and grabs at it, swinging to the next one.

He highlights an example, when he did an Audience With for around 6,000 people. During the show he was asked when he would be making a new album.

The question came at the time when the singer had been dropped by his record label.

"I said I didn't know and I wasn't going to fund my own album, but then a lady in the audience told me she would pay for it via crowd funding.

"And that's what happened. It was all fair and transparent, and we a company that guided us, and we offered those who pledged money the chance to meet up.

"And so I did lunches and teas for those who put in a little bit more."

He adds; smiling; "It's what you have to do these days."

The album shot into the charts, and now the fans have said they want a musicals album and a Christmas album.

"I said to them 'You are now my record company.' And that's the way it has turned out."

He has his TV career of course, with Pressure Pad, and a new series of Arrow. "Thanks to that I'm really big in China. Who would have guessed?"

He won't go to China, thanks to the discrimination. "But one day," he says, poignantly. "The dominoes are always falling."

And will he be back in Glasgow? In panto? If it makes sense, if it represents a new challenge.

And perhaps if the Krankies are still around.

*Cinderella, the SECC, until January 4th.