Manchester panto favourites Jason Manford and Ben Nickless reunite for fifth Opera House panto season

Manchester Opera House and pantomime producer Crossroads Pantomimes announced that comedy sensation Jason Manford will headline this year’s Manchester pantomime, Dick Whittington, alongside Manchester panto favourite Ben Nickless. The production will run from Saturday 5 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027.

The duo return for a fifth panto season together by popular demand, with Jason in the title role and Ben as Idle Jack, following a run of hugely successful seasons that have cemented them as a much-loved pairing with Manchester audiences.

Salford-born Jason Manford is one of the UK’s leading multi-talented performers, with a career spanning acting, presenting and singing on both stage and screen. Jason has hosted many shows for the BBC and ITV including Children In Need, The Olivier Awards, Unbeatable, Sunday Night at The Palladium and The Royal Variety Performance. He has appeared as a judge in two series of ITV1’s Saturday night show Starstruck and has hosted BBC One’s primetime show Big Night of Musicals for the past five years. On stage, Jason has starred in numerous musicals in the West End and across the UK, including Wizard of Oz, Sweeney Todd, The Producers, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Guys and Dolls, Curtains, and Something Rotten!, which returns to the Opera House this Summer with Jason playing Nick Bottom. He is currently on tour with his solo show, A Manford All Seasons.

On returning to the Manchester Opera House for his fifth pantomime season, Jason Manford said:

“Could not be any more excited to be coming back to Manchester for my fifth year in panto! What started off as a post-Covid job to work ‘in the gap’ has now become the highlight of my year!  To be part of people’s festive tradition is an absolute privilege, and to hang out and laugh with Ben Nickless honestly makes my Christmas. I’ll be Dick this year. Dick Whitingham that is, so I’ll see you there! Oh yes you will!”

Joining Jason once again is Britain’s Got Talent finalist and audience favourite Ben Nickless, in the role of Idle Jack. Rochdale-born Nickless started his working life playing the comedy clubs in the North-West and his career took off in 2006 when he performed his own style of comedy and impressions on the BBC television series Let Me Entertain You alongside Brian Conley and Christine Bleakley, winning his episode. Some of his previous roles at the Manchester Opera House include Muddles in Snow White, Wishee Washee in Aladdin, Smee in The Pantomime Adventures of Peter Pan, Silly Simon in Jack and the Beanstalk, Buttons in Cinderella and most recently, Will Scarlett in Robin Hood.

Ben, who marks his eighth consecutive in the Opera House pantomime, said:

“Manchester panto has become home to me, so returning for another season is an absolute joy. Working alongside my hilarious mate Jason is a real treat, I’m sure we’re all excited to see him back again this time as our Dick.. I think I said that right. The Manchester audiences always bring such an incredible atmosphere and we’re so lucky to be part of your tradition, I’m already looking forward to Christmas”

Dick Whittington is staged by Crossroads Pantomimes, the world’s biggest pantomime producer, led by Michael Harrison and the team behind recent Manchester Opera House Christmas successes including last year’s production of Robin Hood.

Michael Harrison, Chief Executive of Crossroads Pantomimes said:

 “Jason and Ben have become an essential part of the Manchester pantomime, and it is a real pleasure to welcome them back once again. This year’s Dick Whittington also features spectacular sets and costumes created for the iconic The London Palladium pantomime, and is set to be a truly lavish and entertaining show for all the family.”

Join our hero on a quest for fame, fortune and happiness as he journeys towards becoming Lord Mayor. Packed with all the traditional pantomime ingredients audiences expect from Manchester Opera House This action-packed production promises laugh-out-loud comedy, plenty of boos and hisses, and lavish sets and costumes.

Dick Whittington plays at Manchester Opera House Saturday 5 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027. Tickets are available here.