As Christmas is just around the corner, the IBTimes UK has put together this essential guide to the best pantomime shows around the UK.

Whether you want to watch your favourite television stars and celebrities perform in classics such as Cinderella or Peter Pan, or simply just form the terrible jokes and the chance to shout "he's behind you!", we are sure you are bound to find something that you and your whole family can enjoy from this collection of performances.

London

Henry Winkler will be appearing as Hook in London
Henry Winkler will be appearing as Hook in London

Henry Wrinkler, AKA Happy Days' The Fonz and more recently the hapless lawyer Barry Zuckerkorn in the cult TV Show Arrested Development will star as Captain Hook in the much loved children's story Peter Pan at the Richmond Theatre.

The legendary TV actor will play the part of dastardly Hook for the show which has down the years been described as "pretty much the perfect panto".

Peter Pan will run at Richmond Theatre from 6 December 2013 to Sunday 12 January 2014. There will also be a special relaxed performance of the show on 6 January.

Tickets prices range from £11.90-£40.40 plus transaction fee and are available here.

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Bafta award-winning comedian, writer and actress Jo Brand will be making her pantomime debut as Genie of the Ring in the New Wimbledon Theatre's production of Aladdin.

Performing alongside Brand will be award winning actor and television presenter Matthew Kelly as Widow Twankey and street dancers Flawless as the Peking Police Force, with the role of with the role of Aladdin being performed by West End musical theatre star Oliver Thornton.

Performances will run from 6 December till 12 January, with ticket costing between £11.90 and £37.90

Former X-Factor winner and Joe McElderry will also be making his pantomime debut starring as Prince Charming in Cinderella at the Beck Theatre in Middlesex.

Families can expect to see a whole host of live performances from the 2011 Popstar To Operastar winner, as well as the old favourites such as Buttons, the Ugly Sisters and the Fairy Godmother.

Cinderella will run from 14 December to 5 January and tickets are available from £18.50.

If you can't decide which pantomime you would like to go to this year, why not head to the Vaudeville Theatre where Double Olivier nominees Dan and Jeff will cram seven classic stories into just one evening in Potted Panto.

Now in its third run, Potted Panto will see the popular double act squeeze in stories and characters from Aladdin, Snow White, Jack and the Beanstalk and more into one frantic 80 minute show.

Praised as a show which produces "tear-inducing laughter", Potted Panto will run from 8 December to 5 January with tickets ranging from £23.00 -£34.50

Milton Keynes

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TV and film star Warwick Davis (Life's Too Short) will be the very special guest at the Milton Keynes Theatre as their production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs marches into town.

Appearing in some of the most biggest films of all time in the Star Wars and Harry Potter series, Davis will be performing alongside former soap actress and glamour model Jennifer Ellison as well as West End Shaun Dalton as the dashing Prince Charming.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs will be performed from 6 December to 12 January. Tickets are available here.

Bristol

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This Christmas, the Bristol Hippodrome will be throwing the ball of the year as television's dancing superstar Louie Spence will be the main attraction at their performance of Cinderella.

Starring as the Prince's loyal and outrageous servant, Dandini, Spence will appear with former Hear'Say member and West End performer Suzanne Shaw, who will play the part of Cinderella, and Hippodrome regular Andy Ford as her best friend Buttons.

Performances run from 6 December to 5 January and tickets are available here.

Birmingham

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Billed as one of the biggest pantomimes in the UK, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at the Birmingham Hippodrome is sure to delight families of all ages.

Heading the cast as the handsome Prince is John Partridge best known for playing the role of Christian in BBC1's EastEnders.

Elsewhere, fashion guru Gok Wan will be making his pantomime debut as The Man in The Mirror and Birmingham favourite, Gary Wilmot making his first performance as the hysterical pantomime Dame.

Shows run between 19 December and 2 February. Prices range from £12.00 to £39.00

Manchester

Dick Whittington tells the rags to riches of a young man and his cat as they go on an exciting quest for fame and fortune.

However, this panto season at the Manchester Opera house, the star of this will show be Ashleigh and her trick performing dog Pudsey - last year's winners of Britain's Got Talent.

Appearing alongside them making will be West End and television star Jodie Prenger, making her panto debut as as Fairy Bowbells, and Ben Faulks, better known as Mr Bloom from CBeebies, as Dick Whittington.

Tickets and show times available here.

Cardiff

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This year, the New Theatre in Cardiff will be hosting another giant pantomime full of adventure and spectacle with Jack and the Beanstalk.

Leading the cast for this much loved story will be one of the most recognisable entertainers in Britain, Julian Clary.

Staged by Qdos Entertainment, the world's biggest pantomime producer and the company behind last year's record-breaking production of Sleeping Beauty, this year's production of Jack and the Beanstalk is sure to be another huge hit the whole family will love.

Ticket information can be found via the website.

London