SURREY ROCKS - NOV/DEC 2026 - Magazine - Page 136
Bobby Davro
Surrey resident Bobby Davro has had an illustrious
career over 5 decades on stage and screen. He has
had his own self-titled TV show, been in 'EastEnders'
and performed as a comedian at Edinburgh Fringe and
sold out theatres throughout the UK. We caught up
with the charming (and ever so funny!) impresario on
his upcoming 'Cinderella' panto at Esher Theatre, his
thoughts on recently becoming a grandfather and his
most embarrassing TV moment ever! Read on to find
out more in this exclusive interview.
YOU ARE WRITING & PERFORMING
IN THIS YEAR'S ESHER THEATRE
PANTO 'CINDERELLA', WHAT
INSPIRES YOU WHEN WRITING
SCRIPTS?
The thing that inspires me the most is
to look out into a packed theatre and
see the entire audience, young and old,
having the time of their lives, laughing
singing and clapping all together as a
family. There's no greater reward for me
as a pantomime performer. Long may it
continue!
HOW DO YOU INCORPORATE THOSE
ALL-IMPORTANT ADULT JOKES
INTO A KIDS PANTO?
In my opinion, the secret to writing
jokes for pantomime is to write them for
the adults to enjoy just as much as the
children. As long as the kids are laughing,
even if maybe, they don’t necessarily get
some of the jokes, I know it’s working for
everyone.
The comedy and slightly cheekier gags
rarely cause adults to be offended
and in my experience, it’s down to the
individual, as they say, offence isn’t
given its taken and what might make
one person feel it’s too rude will be fine
for another. Most innuendos, (Which is
a tradition in pantomime) go over the
children’s heads. I use my experience of
doing fifty plus pantos to date, to set a
standard that can be trusted. I use my
own filter to judge what I personally see
as acceptable for a family crowd and my
standards seems to have worked very
well so far.
I have a great reputation for making
family audiences feel comfortable and
entertained and it is something I’m very
proud of. For me, a pantomime written
just for children won't work as well as the
ones written to include jokes for adults.
I’m confident that this years pantomime
"Cinderella" at the Esher Theatre will be
136 SURREYROCKS | ISSUE 56
a show that the whole family will enjoy
and will be the funniest one to date.
WHAT'S BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE TV
SHOW TO STAR IN?
My own Saturday night comedy shows
that I fronted back in the mid 80's and
early 90's were my favourite shows to do
because they showcased my talents and
allowed me to express my creativity to
the full potential. Happy days indeed.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING AS
LOVEABLE ROGUE VINNIE MONKS
ON 'EASTENDERS'?
I loved being in Eastenders and taught
me an awful lot about the skills of being
an actor. I only appeared on the soap for
about fourteen months and only left the
show because I wanted to pursue other
opportunities presented to me at the
time, however I'd be happy to return if
asked.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE DOING KISSING
SCENES WITH YOUR ON SCREEN
PARTNER SHIRLEY?
I should have received a Bafta for
kissing Shirley Carter and making it look
convincing. One of the greatest acting
performances in TV history! I’m joking of
course, she was lovely!
