Why do Christmas crackers go bang? How is snow formed? Questions that we need to know the answers to, especially at this time of year! Maddie delivers a fun-filled, magical, Christmas themed show in Maddie Moate’s Very Curious Christmas that will answer all these questions and so many more!

Who is Maddie Moate and why does she have so much curiosity around Christmas? Having not watched children’s TV for many years now, I enrolled my seven-year-old nephew to review this show with me! Noah, of course, knew who Maddie Moate was and was surprised that I didn’t! She is an author, YouTuber, award-winning podcaster and BAFTA winning children’s TV personality.

Maddie wrote and delivered a show that was fun, engaging, interesting and a real treat for the all the family.

The show consists of a one scene, one act performance and lasts approximately one hour. The staging is simple, yet effective, depicting Santa’s workshop in the North Pole. Maddie is working with the elves for her ‘work experience’ and helps them fix the issues they encounter with science, rather than magic. This then enables a very glamours Mrs Claus to throw her annual Christmas party!

The ‘JinglePad’ uses a close-up, moveable camera to enable the audience to experience the science in great detail, displayed on a large screen above their heads. This works well and ensures that your little ones don’t miss a thing.

There are elements of pantomime humour including “she’s behind you” and “oh yes we can” as well as a ‘split the audience down the middle’ singing competition which add to the Christmas feel.

Maddie is engaging, talented and her delivery is well executed. The pace is right with a good level of technical language, explained in simpler terms, as and when is needed. I had anticipated more audience participation for the youngsters but due to the nature of most of the experiments, this is not suitable but detracts nothing from the show.

Maddie is a great singer and leads the vocal numbers well. She is accompanied by her two elves, Tinker, trainee toy maker, and Googles, head of health and safety, played by Kira MacCarter and Zain Abrahams respectively.

The three cast members interact well and are engaging, funny and credible. The cast are also joined by an on-screen Jennie Dale as Mrs Claus, facetiming the workshop during the show.

The show is as interactive as you want it to be, Noah and I loved singing along and joining in when invited to. It is entertaining, laugh-out-loud funny, the science really is interesting and engaging and the kids will definitely learn something. I know my family will be very impressed on Christmas Day when Noah tells everyone around the dinner table why sprouts make your farts smell! There is a threaded theme of support, friendship and the importance of believing in each other which was really unexpected but worked well. The Christmas element means that there is a segway for some magical, seasonal moments, which I won’t spoil for you, but they were really quite emotive.

When we were leaving, I told Noah that the cast were getting ready to do another show that afternoon and his response “Does that mean we can go and watch it again?” What more of a compliment is needed! Noah thinks that it deserves 4,000,000 stars so I can give nothing less than a solid 5-star review. Well done to all involved.

If you have 4-11 year olds, with a love of knowledge and a thirst for science, I can guarantee that they will love Maddie Moate’s Very Curious Christmas. Having seen many children’s shows over the years, this is one of the best. It wasn’t at all cringey, it had the right pitch, was well-paced and it had real science and we loved it.

Review by Nicci Garlick

Maddie Moate’s Curious Christmas is playing at the Apollo Theatre, in London, until January 4^th 2025. There is a relaxed performance on December 20^th. Get booking, your little ones will not be disappointed this Christmas. You can find out more on their website.

If you like this review you might also like my review of Beauty and the Beast at Marlowe Theatre, Matilda and Starlight Express.