Pantomime season is well and truly upon us, oh yes it is (sorry I couldn't resist) and I for one couldn't be happier as I'm very proud to admit that I'm just pure panto daft.

I've seen two pantos so far with lots more booked over the festive period but let me tell you about these two Christmas crackers. Firstly I jumped on the train with my pal Laura and went down to The Palace theatre in Kilmarnock to see the Imagine Theatre production of Dick Whittington starring River City's Sally Howitt and Outlander star James McAnerney. It was the 1.30pm show so it was jam packed with school children booing, cheering and screaming “it's behind you” at the top of their wee lungs and loving every single second of this wonderful production. The cast were all outstanding but a special mention must go to Fraser Boyle and Gary Morrison who were hilarious from start to finish as Mammy Sarah and Idle Jack. The Kilmarnock pantomime is always one of my very favourites and once again it did not disappoint.

Next up was Sleeping Beauty at The Kings theatre in Glasgow starring the incredible Elaine C Smith and my dear friend Johnny Mac. I was beyond excited to see this production as I'm a huge Elaine C Smith fan, she and Dorothy Paul are literally my idols, and because pantomime giants Qdos have taken over the reins at this beloved theatre. It was certainly somewhat of a homecoming for Elaine C Smith as she been up delighting audiences in Aberdeen for the past few years but she's back in her home city of Glasgow and we couldn't be happier. We took our seats, sat back and watched the magic unfold and utterly magical it was. From the incredible special effects to Juliet Cadzow’s deliciously devilish Carabosse and Elaine's Fairy Bella Houston dazzling us onstage, it was pretty much perfect. In fact for me it was a masterclass in panto performing. Johnny Mac as Muddles is outstanding in this role, I've honestly never seen anyone funnier live onstage. You know that thing, that connection with an audience and the ability to deliver a punchline that generates a wall of laughter smacking you around the chops? Well Johnny’s got that in abundance. The only thing I would have changed would have been a little more of the wonderful Paul James Corrigan as poor Slimeball. Paul is one of the finest actors in Scotland and he steals every scene he's in. My favourite was during the whole Apple Watch sketch, just brilliant. So honestly if you're looking for panto recommendations you really can't go wrong with these two fantastic shows.

I'm delighted to say that the beautiful Choirs With Purpose album, Stand Together is released today. The 12 charity choirs, including Missing People who were finalists on Britain's Got Talent last year, The NHS Choir who had a Christmas Number 1 2016 and Parrs Wood High School who performed with Ariana Grande at the One Love Manchester concert have all performed a track on the album alongside special guest vocalists Carol Decker, Alexander O’Neal, Hayley Tamaddon and yours truly. I was truly honoured to be asked by Lucy Lintott and the MND Scotland choir to perform on their chosen track Clouds and to sing again on the single which was released a few weeks ago, We All Stand Together. It's a really lovely album and hopefully through record sales we can raise as much money as possible for these wonderful charities. The album is out now and you can buy online or in shops this Christmas. Thank you.

Don't forget Michelle McManus’ Winter Wonderland featuring Soundsational Choir opens on Thursday night at The Mitchell Theatre in Glasgow for 3 nights with a 2pm matinee show on Saturday 23rd December too. There are still some tickets left so if you're fast you might just get your hands on them. Tickets can be purchased by calling the box office on 01412872999 or online at tickets.glasgowconcerthalls.com