Marching into the record book at the Cambridge Arts Theatre

You don’t expect shows for children to break box-office records, pantomimes apart – but that a special case. However, those awful Egyptians and ruthless Romans – as presented by the Birmingham Stage Company’s adaptations of Terry Deary’s successful books – have both been among the highest-selling shows at the Cambridge Arts Theatre in recent years. Return visits by terrible Tudors and vile Victorians are threatened next year.

Perhaps part of the secret lies in the way adults as well as children enjoy knowing more about the civilisations which shaped our modern world in so many ways and at the creation of monuments and artefacts at which we still wonder. The style of presentation helps, of course, with the three-dimensional effects that require special glasses. Good theatre and that certain satisfaction which comes from learning something new in an entertaining fashion is a winning formula.