THERE is something very special about taking the whole family to a show - and with panto season just around the corner, we were keen to test the attention spans of our four and seven year olds so long after their last trips to the theatre.

And so we snapped up the Theatre Royal Winchester’s kind offer of tickets to review The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show (on the opening night of its new tour no less!) - and quickly realised we needn’t have worried.

It’s a magical story, and a firm bedtime favourite for our girls, and was brought to life superbly alongside three other Eric Carle classics Brown Bear, Brown Bear; Ten Little Rubber Ducks; and The Very Lonely Firefly with the help of no fewer than 75 puppets!

At 45 minutes long, with no interval, it was the perfect length, and had plenty of interaction throughout to keep the little ones captivated.

After 18 months of YouTube and Netflix, it was a delight to see our girls engaged by live performance - and Theatre Royal Winchester has plenty to offer younger audiences, from Stick Man ballet The Snow Queen (November 14) to panto Aladdin (from December 4), and much more. See www.theatreroyalwinchester.co.uk