Bolton preparing for dinosaur invasion at the Albert Halls

Mike is the driving force behind Dinosaur Adventure Live which comes to Bolton’s Albert Halls on Sunday. The show features a series of walking and flying dinosaurs and takes the audience on a quest to save the dinosaur island and stop a volcano from erupting wiping out all the dinosaurs.

Entertaining clearly runs in the family. Mike’s dad, also called Mike, was one of the stars of The Comedians and also presented the TV show 3-2-1. Mike is no stranger to working with young audiences. He presented the Sooty Show between 2005 and 2008 and has been behind productions of Rainbow, Dangermouse and Count Duckula.

“I grew up in the theatre,” he said. “I basically spent my childhood at the end of a pier while my dad was doing a summer season.

“He would do 26 weeks in Blackpool with the Russ Abbott Show and I got to see everything. As a kid I wouldn’t be bothered about some of the acts but if a magician came on or the dancing skeletons then I’d be hooked.

“When I was growing up, there wasn’t Peppa Pig or Thomas the Tank Engine on stage, we’d go and see a variety show but the whole family would go.

“Today you might get mum taking little Sarah to see Peppa Pig but dad and little Henry will go to a different show.

“I want to put on shows which the whole family can go to and which will appeal to all age groups from five up to teenagers.”

Trouble on Volcano Island is the second show for Dinosaur Adventure Live.

“The idea of the show came from looking at what kids are into,” said Mike, who is also responsible for the show Exciting Science.

“My son, who is nine, is a big help in this because as children grow their tastes change and he has helped me test out ideas.

“I had seen some of the other dinosaur shows out there and they do what they do,” said Mike. “What struck me was that there wasn’t really a storyline that kids could identify with. From my experiences on the Sooty Show I know that if you can get the audience hooked within the first two or three minutes they will stick with you.

“My ethos with kids’ shows is that they have to be involved in some way at least every 30 seconds, even if it is just a case of asking then a question or getting a reaction. You have got to keep them engaged. After a while they know they are going to be asked their opinion or to do something and they’re with you.”

The real stars of Dinosaur Adventure Live are the dinosaurs themselves including a terrifying T-Rex.

“We have added a lot of new dinosaurs for the new show,” said Mike. “We have more baby dinosaurs which proved much more popular than I expected in the first show we did. And we’ve got some pterodactyls which will fly over the audience.”

As well as the amazing dinosaurs, the show is also a good adventure tale.

“The dinosaurs live on an island where a volcano has lain dormant for years,” said Mike. “But now tremors are starting and the audience need to help to prevent then from getting worse. To stop the volcano from erupting the characters must find an ancient stone tablet which has been broken up and hidden in three different locations on the island.

“It is a rollicking good adventure story which has a lot of laughs and also some jeopardy.”

Although the audience play a key role in the show Mike is quick to stress it’s not a pantomime.

“There isn’t an ‘it’s behind you’ moment in the show,” he said. “The fourth wall will most definitely be broken but is also children’s theatre which is both educational and entertaining. The cast have to provide a lot of energy and excitement and the audience feeds off that.”

Dinosaur Adventure Live, Bolton Albert Halls, Sunday, March 31. Details from www.alberthalls-bolton.co.uk