Ladies and gentlemen, tonight we must discuss a very serious issue: your future. ‘Planning on selling your soul to investment banking when you graduate? Think it will make you happy? Think the money will wash away your misery?’ Well yes I know the answer from most of you will be ‘No, Luvvie! I plan on flouncing around The Strand, with a dilapidated velvet jacket strewn over one shoulder, accompanied by a similarly-passionate-posse of liberal Luvs and Luvesses, who heart literature and believe in the higher art that forms the basis of all humanity, you Nancy Boy!’

Buuut, for those out there, who, you know, may be looking for a proper job, and hear the call of Goldman Sachs jangling through the bank deposit every time you get £10 out in Market Square may find Toby Jones’ questions rather pertinent. Toby Jones is the director of Going Short, a new play by Issy McCann, which won the RSC/Marlowe Other Prize for new writing, and explores the world of investment banking (!), previewing at the ADC this week.

Now enough with all the seriousness, because – must contain excitement! Think cold bath, think lecture, think investment banking – it’s only bloody Christmas! So that means Panto time! Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves hits up the ADC for a whole fortnight.

Actress Mel Heslop says, “with over 100 company members and 1,000 prop sausages, the show promises to be a spectacle- so why get festive only once?” (yes sausages! yes festive!) Actor James Walker notes the “absurdly elaborate costumes, and even more absurdly elaborate revolving set” (yes revolve!), which Director Matt Bulmer translates into, ‘Welcome to the Cave of Wonders. Welcome to the Place to Be’ (hell yes!). According to Actress Ellie Ross, when it comes down to it, “it is also more fun than you can shake a stick at”. So put down that stick, and get involved (YES!).