The Mayflower'S panto has already made more than £1m - and it hasn't even opened yet!

Ticket sales for Cinderella, which opens at 7pm tonight, have equalled those for last year's Dick Whittington and The Mayflower is hoping that it will do even better.

It should do well at the box office - Brian Conley, who is reputed to be Britain's highest-paid pantomime star, is in the lead role.

Paul Lewis, the Mayflower's head of marketing said: "This looks like being our most financially successful pantomime ever.

"The return of Brian Conley, one of Britain's favourite performers, in a spectacular pantomime is proving to be hugely popular - we are expecting an audience of more than 100,000 people!"

The success of the pantomime proves that although panto stars are often mocked, the traditional Christmas show is still one of the most popular forms of live entertainment.

But even if takings for Cinderella do beat last year's panto, which starred Jim Davidson, it's unlikely to beat the theatre's box office record of over £4m, set by Phantom of the Opera, which ran from January to March, 2000.

"The difference is Phantom ran for 12 weeks, whereas the panto's only on for five, so it doesn't really compare," said The Mayflower's press and publicity officer Patrick Brookes.

"Pantos are some of our biggest shows, and with Cinderella following in the footsteps of Beauty and the Beast, it's been a very successful season for the Mayflower."

Tickets are selling fast but there's no reason to miss out on seeing the panto if you haven't bought yours yet.

"There are 59 performances and there are still plenty of good seats available, so no one needs to miss out," said Mr Brookes.

Cinderella opens tonight and is on until January 26.

Call the box office on 023 8071 1811.