All The Fun Of The Fair begins the second you arrive at the Wyvern, with a mini fairground in full swing in front of the theatre.

As the curtain rises, this frothy, fun musical takes off at a terrific pace reflecting the colour, speed and hint of danger in the air whenever the fair comes to town.

The Romeo and Juliet-style story is told through the eyes of Rosa the fortune teller, herself hopelessly in love with the fairground owner, Levi, played by David Essex.

David is no longer the young heart-throb. He is the first to admit it, even making jokes about his long lost dark curls, but the second he begins to sing you feel It’s Gonna Be Alright, as the old magic is back.

He may have has lost his hair but he has lost none of his stage presence, nor that twinkly smile and his ability to hold the crowd in the palm of his hand. He also has heaps of humour through out the show and Rock On is a pure candyfloss delight.

The sets, designed by Ian Westbrook, capture the tawdry glamour, loud music, flashing lights and tense excitement that is the essence of a fairground. The musical is pure escapism, creating a West Side Story meets Carousel concoction with great special effects, including 3D without the glasses.

The singing is excellent, although there was a slight problem with the sound in the first half, soon rectified by the proficient sound engineer.

The male leads dominate the stage, with Tim Newman as Jonny portraying a simple guy with a true philosophy, without being mawkish.

The romantic lead, Jack, played by Rob Compton, is energetic and full of fun. He totally engages with the audience and his fellow actors and interacts well with David as father and son.

My favourite is Druid played by Barry Bloxham, hamming it up splendidly.

David Burrows as Harvey reminded me of Phillip Glennister’s Gene Hunt, in Life On Mars.

The whole company clearly loves messing with the motorbikes and careering around on the dodgems, and their enthusiasm is infectious. Watch out for the wow finish! – Flicky Harrison