Nina Wadia Joins JACK AND THE BEANSTALK Pantomime at York Theatre Royal

EastEnders and Goodness Gracious Me star Nina Wadia will be sprinkling fairy dust over the York Theatre Royal pantomime this Christmas. She will play Fairy Sugarsnap in this year's family pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk from December 8 to January 7.

She joins the already-announced Robin Simpson, who returns as the Dame, and Scottish actor James Mackenzie, best known as the presenter of CBBC's fantasy adventure game show Raven. He'll play the villainous Luke Backinanger.

The team of writer Paul Hendy, director Juliet Forster and choreographer Hayley Del Harrison all return following the success of previous pantomimes Cinderella and All New Adventures of Peter Pan.

Award-winning actress Nina Wadia is best known for the sketch show Goodness Gracious Me and as Zainab Masood in BBC's soap EastEnders, for which she won best comedy performance and best onscreen partnership at the British Soap Awards.

Recent television credits include Count Abdulla for ITVX, the Netflix series Sandman based on the Neil Gaiman novels as well as series two of The Hitmen and Stephen Marchant's BBC One/Amazon Prime series The Outlaws.

Other television appearances include Too Close, Death in Paradise, MAXX, Still Open All Hours, You Tube original series Origin, Newark Newark, Murder on the Blackpool Express and Holby City.

Nina began her career in theatre and has starred in a variety of productions including Bleak Expectations at the Criterion Theatre in London's West End, the Tony award-winning The Vagina Monologues, Macbeth alongside Mark Rylance, and Michael Frayn's Matchbox Theatre at Hampstead Theatre.

On the big screen, Nina's credits include Code 46 with Tim Robbins, Sixth Happiness, Bend It Like Beckham, I Can't Think Straight, Bollywood hit Namaste London, Strangeways Here We Come and Four, which she also executive produced on Netflix.

She starred opposite Will Smith in Disney's Aladdin, and with Luke Treadaway in A Streetcat Named Bob and its sequel A Gift From Bob. She can also be seen currently in the movies Repeat, The Stranger in Our Bed and Followers.

She has hosted The One Show, The Wright Stuff, Remembrance Day Ceremonies alongside Sir Michael Palin, and has been a regular presenter on BBC's Sunday Morning Live.

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