Horrible Histories Live Review: Ingenious show brings Egyptians to life in all their brilliant and grim glory at West Yorkshire theatre

All the humour, fun and catchy songs are included, along with those interesting details that even those who studied History to A-level never knew about some different time periods.

What started as an incredibly popular series of books by Terry Deary has sparked a BAFTA-winning TV series and now these stage productions by the Birmingham Stage Company.

Two are currently touring the UK – Terrible Tudors and Awful Egyptians – and audiences are in for a treat at both.

We saw Awful Egyptians at the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford and it was a silly, educational and entertaining delight.

A cast of just three – Rob Cummings, Jack Ballard and Megan Parry – took the audience back in time to learn about the wonderful albeit brutal pharaohs and their subjects.

What is so clever about Horrible Histories is how it does not patronise those watching. It is not afraid to try to educate more than just the basics and it will not shy away from the cruel realities of the time it is covering.

But it will do so in a way that children – and adults – will enjoy and learn from.

So we had Ramesses II doing an impressive Donald Trump impression, a musical number from Osiris's wife Isis as she tries to find parts of her dismembered husband and an in-depth explanation of the mummification process complete with a “mummy rap”.

And in the second half, we were all provided with 3D glasses so we could appreciate eye-popping special effects including flying mummified cats.

As we left, I heard someone say they had enjoyed it so much, they planned to see if they could buy tickets for the Terrible Tudors show.

Truly the best way to learn about history at any age.

For other shows being performed at the Alhambra Theatre and other Bradford theatres visit https://www.bradford-theatres.co.uk/

For more Horrible Histories live show dates visit https://birminghamstage.com/shows/