STAFF from Thames Water are busy rehearsing for their annual pantomime at the Wyvern Theatre.

This year the pantomime, Aladdin, Jam And Jerusalem is centred around a show creating a show.

The story revolves around a small Women’s Institute preparing for its annual village panto when they mistake a stranger for an acclaimed West End director.

He agrees to run the show, which turns into a series of hilarious calamities.

This is impresario Paul Aust’s 20th production, drawing on his own experiences of putting pantos together and includes elements of Aladdin, which he staged almost 20 years ago for WaterAid.

He said: “The panto this year is really in two halves. The first half is a play about putting a production on and then the second half is an abridged version of that original WaterAid panto. It’s something different and it’s a chance to give a little insight into what I’ve been doing for the past 20 years. ”

As usual, the show will feature many of the elements that have made the Wyvern Theatre production such a success down the years and will even include a reference to Thames Water’s CEO Steve Robertson, set to be in the audience on the opening night.

Since the first panto in 1996, the group has raised £210,000 for a host of local charities but this year all the proceeds will go to the Thames Loves Malawi campaign, helping WaterAid raise £2m over the next four years for water and sanitation facilities in the world’s poorest country.

Over the years, the annual panto has given scores of Thames Water people the chance to show off their talents, either on stage or behind the scenes. “For me, the highlight of the past 20 years has been the people,” said Paul. “In rehearsal, we spend every Sunday afternoon in the winter with them and while there’s been a hard core of six or seven, others come in and become part of the family.

“It’s a good way of bonding with people you wouldn’t normally meet.”

While the personnel may have changed over the years, the ethos behind the company remains the same – raising money for a worthwhile cause and having fun in the process.

Aladdin, Jam And Jerusalem is at the Wyvern Theatre, Swindon on January 27 and 28.

Tickets are on sale now priced at £10.