IT is the ‘punk pub panto’ that has been described as Tarantino meets Shameless meets Elf with a generous helping of Phoenix Nights.

Suffice to say Not Too Tame’s version of Cinderella is best not to be confused with other family friendly versions of the fairytale.

The theatre company has transferred the classic story into a northern pub setting in a fully immersive experience for adults only.

Director Jimmy Fairhurst, who grew up in Burtonwood, said: “As soon as you cross the threshold you are served by the wicked stepmother or Cinders at the bar and then people can interact as much or as little as they want to.

“You’ve got this array of mad characters but actually they are rooted in reality. We’ve sold out quite a few of the nights and there is a producer coming to London and Salford with a view to putting it on in the West End next year. That’s really exciting.

“One of our patrons, Stephen Tompkinson, is playing Scrooge in the West End but he came up on his day off to see it. It’s amazing to have that support.

“It’s written by Luke Barnes from Liverpool and is the first time we’ve worked with a new writer but the script is so funny.”

Karaoke is used throughout the story and the mic will even be offered to the audience at the end for those who want to stick around for a song and a dance.

Jimmy, 34, added: “It’s part theatre, part gig because the audience can get up afterwards and do karaoke and there’s this mad stand up bingo.

“You could be sitting down or at the bar and the next minute there will be a mad musical number. There’s a Queen song that plays out like a real-life music video.

“It’s just a knees up. You go in, get told a great story, have a laugh and a few beers with your mates from work and then get up for a sing and dance afterwards.

“Our biggest problem is not partying ourselves every night because we’ve got a long tour to do.

“It’s got a lot of heart and we get a roaring round of applause for what we’ve chosen to do with Cinders’ story.

“But we’ve had a lot of fun with it and it is the funniest thing we have done. We just said: ‘Let’s just make something we’d all love to go and see’, and it seems to be working.

“We set a lot of our productions in working men’s pubs and clubs as they are built to entertain people, house a community and bring people together so those places have an energy.”

The rock and roll streak running through Cinderella is also probably influenced by Jimmy’s brother Dean.

He is the frontman of Burtonwood’s Slydigs who toured with The Who in America and Europe a couple of years ago.

And Jimmy was there alongside them as Slydigs’ tour manager.

He said: “I had two rules – keep them alive and out of jail – and I managed to do both. It was the real deal. We had the big tour bus and we would do signings after the shows and there would be fans grabbing at Dean’s hair.

“It was a bit bizarre but it was the highlight of their career so far. They were living the dream.

“You’d have Pete Townshend walking into your dressing room and asking how you are.

“It was surreal but oddly enough after the first two shows it was like we were best mates.

“Roger was saying: ‘Keep going lads. The music scene’s harder now than it has ever been but you’ve just got to keep going’.

“I had toured America a couple of times with a theatre company called Cheek by Jowl. So it was nice taking the lads to places I already knew in the likes of Venice Beach in LA.

“The favourite thing for me was seeing large numbers of people realise something I already know.

“So when 30,000 got up on their feet and gave a standing ovation to four lads from Warrington it made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. The record label were saying we’ve never had an American audience go for an opening band like this.

“I think it’s because the lads are really personal. What you see on stage is what you get if they’re in the boozer or if you meet them on the street. It serves them well.”

Jimmy was also behind the scenes when Slydigs performed their biggest headline show at the Parr Hall for Warrington Music [WAM] in March.

He added: “The band have adapted their performance to many different stages around the world.

“But playing the Parr Hall was a big thing for Dean because he has seen so many gigs there like Ian Brown and the Arctic Monkeys.

“All of a sudden it was his turn. I think it’s also a big thing for people to see Warrington bands make it. It inspires people.

“When we were growing up there was a sense that for working class people this wasn’t for the ‘likes of us’. But we don’t listen to them – we go and do it anyway.”

Jimmy also recently appeared in Mike Leigh’s film Peterloo about a massacre in Manchester which happened in 1819 when government troops charged a crowd of around 60,000 people who gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation.

Jimmy said: “It was an amazing thing to be part of. It has been described as the culmination of everything Mike Leigh has been working towards. It’s a masterpiece of northern history but as a man Mike never looked flustered.

“He’s always got in his mind’s eye what he wants to achieve. He was great to work with and very funny.

“So it was nice to see him again at the premiere.”

Cinderella is at The Lowry in Salford Quays from December 18 to 22. Visit nottootame.com/cinderella