News: SOUTH SHIELDS' OWN JOE McELDERRY WINS AT THE PANTOMIME AWARDS 2026

SOUTH SHIELDS' OWN JOE McELDERRY WINS AT THE PANTOMIME AWARDS 2026

South Shields singer and performer Joe McElderry has taken home a coveted national accolade at The Pantomime Awards 2026, winning the Carmen Silvera Award for Best Magical Being for his role as the Spirit of the Ring in Aladdin at Newcastle Theatre Royal.

The awards ceremony, staged in partnership with Trafalgar Entertainment and ATG Entertainment, was held on Sunday 19 April at Wycombe Swan in High Wycombe and presented by Vernon Kay. Now in their fifth year, the awards saw the UK Pantomime Association's 64 judges collectively visit 234 venues across the country, taking in over 600 performances before casting their votes.

Joe McElderry, winner of the CARMEN SILVERA AWARD FOR BEST MAGICAL BEING at The Pantomime Awards 2026
Photo: Ian Olsson Photography

For Joe, this season at the Theatre Royal was a particularly special one. This year's production marked the 20th anniversary of Danny Adams, Clive Webb and writer/director Michael Harrison's panto partnership, and Joe was given the honour of opening the show with a number that celebrated that remarkable two-decade run. The ensemble appeared as a variety of characters from the shows' back catalogue, from Snow White and Hook through to the Beast, as Joe worked through the impressive history of the productions, with even one of the show's big special effects making an appearance during the opening number.

In his fifth year as part of the Theatre Royal panto cast, Joe has become as much a fixture of the Newcastle Christmas season as the Theatre Royal itself. When we spoke to him during the run, he was in no doubt about what makes this particular show stand apart from anything else on the panto circuit. "I've done panto shows all over the country but there is something so unique about Newcastle," he told us. "Such an impressive amount of people come every year, many booking before they've even seen the previous year's production. It's testament to what the team have built up here at Newcastle Theatre Royal over the years."

When we reviewed the show back in November, it was clear that the Aladdin production was something special. The show opened with an immediacy that left audiences struck by the lavish set, fresh lighting and hanging clouds — and it hadn't even properly begun yet. When it did, sublime costumes and special effects followed. The budget on the opening number alone was possibly greater than some entire panto productions.

Joe's role as the Spirit of the Ring placed him at the centre of the show's musical heart, and he spoke warmly about the unique energy that panto brings. "There are some great songs, some hilarious comedy scenes, and some fantastic special effects. It's really like a West End musical on stage here," he said. "We stand here in the wings in the parts when we're not on stage and we think: 'Wow!' It's such an incredible feeling to be a part of it."

Joe McElderry, winner of the CARMEN SILVERA AWARD FOR BEST MAGICAL BEING, at The Pantomime Awards 2026
Photo: Andrew Billington Photography

Much of what makes the Theatre Royal panto such an event is its willingness to evolve in front of the audience each night, something Joe clearly relishes. "With pantomime, the audience dictates what goes on. The pantomime evolves and changes throughout. We do eight weeks of shows, and each day something different happens, and it gets bigger and more outrageous!"

His performing relationship with Danny Adams has clearly been a key part of that spontaneity. "I never know what is coming next, but we've built up a good friendship, and we can look at each other with an eye contact and know where each other are going to go. That's a special relationship. I feel very lucky to have that. When you have that with another performer it's quite rare."

The production is not so much a show for fans of traditional storytelling — it is a grand, funny and sensational affair that considers its mission to be leaving the audience with a smile on their face and a warm feeling as they go. In Joe McElderry, that mission has a voice to match the spectacle, and the judges of the Pantomime Awards 2026 clearly agreed.

Congratulations, Joe — South Shields couldn't be prouder.

Tickets for the 2026/27 Theatre Royal Panto: https://www.theatreroyal.co.uk/whats-on/jack-and-the-beanstalk/

*Read our full review of Aladdin at Newcastle Theatre Royal: http://www.northeasttheatreguide.co.uk/2025/11/review-aladdin-at-newcastle-theatre.html and our interview with Joe McElderry http://www.northeasttheatreguide.co.uk/2026/01/the-theatre-royal-pantomime-joe.html.*