Poorly children being treated at St Mary’s Hospital were given reason to cheer when a charity put on an interactive version of Alice in Wonderland for them.

Four performers from The Starlight Children’s Foundation performed the play at the Paddington hospital in April as part of its Storytellers Tour around the UK.

Every year, Starlight provides entertainment and distraction to over half a million poorly children and the Starlight Storytellers Tour is giving thousands of poorly children the chance to escape their illness and enter the magical world of storytelling, all from the safety of the hospital ward.

Tina Halton, play specialist at the hospital, said: “We use play to help distract children from the pain and anxiety that they might be feeling as a result of their illness and there’s nothing like a good story to capture a child’s imagination.

“The children are always very excited ahead of a visit from the Starlight Storytellers Tour and we are very grateful to Starlight for providing the opportunity for our young patients to forget their illness for a short while and simply have some fun.”

Neil Swan, Chief Executive of Starlight Children’s Foundation, said: “ All of Starlight’s activities are aimed at distracting children from the pain and anxiety that they might be feeling as a result of their illness.

“The Starlight’s Storytellers Tour is now in its third year and always proves extremely popular with hospitals and hospices alike. We’re delighted to be able to bring storytelling and fun to poorly children and we hope that the stories will be just what the doctor ordered!”

Starlight Storytellers Tour will visit 92 children’s wards across the country.