A Rosy Glow after @thebeaconarts panto...

I took my daughter and her friend to see Jack and the Beanstalk at the Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock today.

My Herald colleague Mary Brennan described it as 'one of the best pantomimes in Scotland' in a recent review... and Mary knows a good panto when she sees one.

Mary skelps around the country like a woman possessed every December seeing more than 30 pantos and reviewing them all for The Herald.

I can confirm it was everything a good panto should be. Funny, silly, sharp, gallus and entertaining with an energetic young cast who are clearly having a ball, engaging merrily and verily with an equally enthusiastic audience.

Some great old fashioned song and dance too. Princess Lulu, played by a feisty Samantha Shields, belted out a great version of her namesake's Shout and also gave a rather beautiful rendition of Bob Dylan's Make You Feel My Love.

As my daughter's pal, Emma, said, 'I didn't think it would be this good!'. Out of the mouths of babes...

It was spur-of-the-moment decision to go. Emma was 10 yesterday, and I thought it would be a treat for the girls on a day when nothing much happens in Scotland.

It suddenly occurred to me as 'dame' Marge O'Reen (played uproariously by Gary Lamont) and her 'boy' Angus (an endearingly daft Paul-James Corrigan) were reading out requests towards the end, that I should have put in a birthday shout-out for Emma.

Who's daft now?

Happy new year Blippers!