CBeebies and CBBC presenter Evie Pickerill has been cast as The Spirit of the Ring in this year’s spectacular family pantomime Aladdin at York Theatre Royal.

She joins Robin Simpson who returns as Dame in a show written by Paul Hendy, directed by Juliet Forster and co-produced with award-winning Evolution Productions – the team behind previous York pantomime hits Cinderella, All New Adventures of Peter Pan and last year’s Jack and the Beanstalk.

Evie is one of the main presenters on children’s television channel CBeebies. She also regularly hosts on CBBC and has guest starred on Blue Peter. She has been hosting CBeebies since 2018 and during her time there has also performed leading roles in both their Christmas and Shakespeare productions.

Aladdin director Juliet Forster previously directed Evie as Juliet in a CBBC Shakespeare production.

Juliet, Creative Director at York Theatre Royal, said: “I am absolutely delighted to be welcoming Evie to York Theatre Royal’s stage this Christmas. I worked with Evie on CBeebies’ Romeo & Juliet – she made a wonderful Juliet and was a joy to work with. I am really looking forward to seeing her bring her unique, lovable style to pantomime – we are so lucky to have her, and York audiences are in for a treat!”

Evie has presented at a variety of live events, including well-known festivals and corporate events. Last year she hosted her first radio show cover on Heart North West.