Panto Day: Introduction

"Panto Day is in part a Carnival: it affords an opportunity for the display of oddly-assorted costumes, mobile tableaux, and good-natured fun; but beneath the youthful gaiety and high spirits there is the very serious purpose of helping worthy causes.

Whatever the weather, the students will be out in-full force to gather a record harvest, and I am sure that their endeavours will be matched by the liberality of those whom they will be making their annual appeal."

Vice-Chancellor J.F. Mountford in the Pantosfinx 1957. 

One of the most amusing ways the University has raised money for charity in the past is the annual Panto Week, founded accidentally in 1897 when students ‘processed’ down from campus to a local theatre to catch the winter play. After the roaring success (and rowdiness) of the first ‘procession’ the day steam-rolled into an annual Panto day, filled with elaborate costumes and designated marching routes. And later (when a day just wasn’t enough) it became a fully fledged, ball-filled Panto week, usually held in February. The annual day became as much a part of the academic year as any lectures or exams. 

Students took over the organising of the procession event in 1901 and, during the 1906 Panto Day, the Student Guild started a Panto Committee which was solely responsible for the organising of the Panto every year. 

Panto occasionally got out of hand, and students began taking part in stunts that had not been authorised by the Guild. In several years, students were warned that the University would ban the event. An article was published in the Guild Gazette on the 10th February 1955:

"When Panto Week activities begin on Monday, students must realise that unless they stick rigidly on one side of the thin line between high spirits and hooliganism, there is a very real danger that Panto will be cancelled by the Liverpool Watch Committee next year."

Senate did take the step to ban the Panto parade in 1961, however it returned in the following years with much better behaviour from students. A Panto King and Panto Queen were also crowned in later years.