In the Night Garden Live Review

You are not going to believe how excited my little Sienna was to be able to go to In the Night Garden Live show! This is a BBC program that we have watched since Bella was little so we all know it well! We were invited to the show in Richmond. It was a very warm day but we didn’t care because we had waited for months to see this lovely show. The show was at Richmond Old Deer Park.

So this delightful children’s classic returns for its eighth consecutive summer tour, which also coincides with In the Night Garden’s 10th-anniversary celebrations. So it is a very special year for them. IN THE NIGHT GARDEN LIVE will perform in Blackheath and Richmond Old Deer Park in London, Cannon Hill Park in Birmingham and Manchester’s intu Trafford Centre.

When you book tickets you are given regular email updates with all the information you need about the show. They mentioned that the doors opened half an hour before the show starts so it is important to arrive on time. You don’t get official seat numbers. You just get in and find a place to sit down. They offer premium seating which guarantees you a seat in the first five rows closest to the stage.

MEET A CHARACTER EXPERIENCE

The day before the show, Sienna and I went to a special greeting to meet the main characters of the show. So Sienna couldn’t believe her luck as she was about to meet Igglepiggle and Upsy Daisy. I loved the idea of doing this because it was a little bit of a practice for me to know how to get there as it was our first time attending this show. Richmond is not that far for us but it took us about 45 minutes driving that day. I knew that on the day of the show it would probably be busier so knowing my route in advance was indeed a big help.

It was easy to find the Showdome because there are lots of signs, so you wouldn’t get lost plus the dome is quite big. Of course for this special meeting, it was all quiet. After being greet we were asked to wait in an area where the kids could sit down and draw. We then queued outside one of the rooms ready meet Igglepiggle first. Sienna was very excited but as soon as we were inside she immediately went all shy and didn’t want to be near him! I was so surprised as I thought she was going to be all over him but I guess it is always a little bit overwhelming to meet their beloved characters in person.

At the end, I managed to convince her to sit inbetween me and him and we got our photo! Yey! He and the team in the meeting room were very nice and friendly. They are aware that kids can behave like that. After this photo, we left this room and went to the room next door to meet Upsy Daisy. I thought Sienna would be more relaxed after meeting Igglepiggle but no, she was very shy again. So we did the same trick which worked again.

What’s included? How much does it cost?

As well as meeting either Igglepiggle or Upsy Daisy, your ticket includes a souvenir story folder with a photo of your little one with their favourite character.

The Meet a Character experience costs just £15 for up to five people (max. three children).

PICKING UP OUR GOODY BAG AND PRINTED PHOTOS

After meeting the characters we then went to queue to get our goody bag and printed photos. We got 2 printed photos, one with each character and a goody bag full of cute In the Night Garden items. Sienna was so happy about getting a goody bag.

You can pre-order a Goody bag and collect it on arrival after your tickets have been scanned. I can assure you that your little ones will be over the moon with this stuff! You can pick an Igglepiggle or Upsy Daisy goody bag. We chose an Upsy Daisy one.

What’s inside the goody bag?

You get a different windmill and hand puppet depending on your choice. You’ll find eight items inside this year’s goody bag:

• 5 piece melamine dinner set – £20
• Character windmill – £7.50
• Windy Day in the Garden DVD – £10
• In the Night Garden Magazine – £3.50
• Tombliboo Soft Toy – £5.50
• Igglepiggle Counts sticker activity book – £6
• Character hand puppet – £4.50
• Goodnight Igglepiggle story book – £7

The RRP Total for this goody bag is £64 but you can pre-order this for £29 so you save £35. On the day you will pay £39. I know this sounds expensive and unnecessary but your kids will be so excited if they get one!

IN THE NIGHT GARDEN LIVE SHOW

On the day of the show we managed to arrive on time, despite it taking a bit longer.

This show is an amazing musical theatre experience for all the family. Children’s favourite CBeebies’ stars – Igglepiggle, Upsy Daisy, Makka Pakka and friends – are all brought beautifully to life on stage using full-size costumes, magical puppets, enchanting music and breathtaking projections. The way they do this is fantastic! I was very impressed with the performance and how well this worked with the children, especially with the youngest ones.

It takes place in its own all-weather, purpose-built inflatable Showdome with many family-friendly facilities. This site-specific structure was a huge hit with my girls. It was all beautifully decorated and it makes you feel like you were actually entering the magical world of the TV show In the Night Garden.

Every adult and child needs a ticket for the show, including babies. Your ticket includes a souvenir activity brochure worth £7 which you can collect when you arrive at the Showdome. Tickets are price from £15.

They have 2 different shows: The Pinky Ponk Show and The Ninky Nonk Show. We watched The Pinky Ponk Show. In this show, Makka Pakka washes everyone’s faces, until his sponge gets stuck in Upsy Daisy’s megaphone! My girls were both mesmerised with this show. I was worried that Bella would be a little bit too old to watch this show but she actually enjoyed every minute.

This show is suitable for kids from 0 to 8 years old and it lasts just under 1 hour, so it is very quick which is perfect for families with little babies. The seats are open rows rather than actual chairs. It works out really well when you are with small children. The view is really good from any part of the seating area. We were actually on the side and we still managed to have a great view. You are very close to the stage so your kids can enjoy a very close experience.

There were some bubbles ejected through the whole showdome which made it even more exciting. The whole atmosphere was great. We all had such a great time!

Because the day was very hot we got some fans to use which was perfect as inside the dome it gets even hotter. The facilities are great! The place was very busy but we didn’t need to queue for long to go to the toilet which is always a plus.

The area where you can buy or pick up your goody bag was very busy. A lot of were queuing to get a photo with one of the characters. I was so glad I did all the day before with Sienna because she was a little bit tired so it was time for us to leave.

DATES AND VENUES FOR THE IN THE NIGHT GARDEN LIVE SHOW

• Blackheath, LONDON: 25 May – 10 June
• Richmond Old Deer Park, LONDON: 17 June – 5 July
• Cannon Hill Park, BIRMINGHAM: 12 – 30 July
• intu Trafford Centre, MANCHESTER: 5 – 28 August

OUR THOUGHTS

We really liked the show. It was eye catching and kept my girls entertained the whole time. Sienna loved seeing her favourite characters on display and she really had a great time. I think anyone that is fan of In The Night Garden will love this show. It is quite an experience and we definitely recommend you to go! Your kids will love it!

Are your kids also fans of In the Night Garden? Have you seen this show? If not, will you take your little ones?

*Disclosure: we were invited to attend the In the Night Garden Live at Richmond as well as we were given the experience to meet the characters together with the printed photos and a goody bag for the purpose of this review. However, all opinions and thoughts are my own. 

Thanks for stopping by,

Love you all ❤️

Franca  💋