YORK theatre company Riding Lights present "some rollicking yarns to get you in t’ mood" for A Yorkshire Christmas this evening at St Andrew’s Church, Huntington, York, at 6pm.

Further performances follow on Saturday at Friargate Theatre, Friargate, at 12.30pm and St Thomas's Church, Lowther Street, York, at 5.30pm.

From the heart of Yorkshire come Ding and Delve, a couple of cheeky shepherds, to amaze you with their cracking Christmas tales. First up is Give It Back, Mak!, wherein unusual predators are on the prowl for Sunday lunch at winter lambing time. The Lamb Chop Inn is full to bursting and Mak’s sign says ‘No Vacancies – Not Even The Teeniest One', but a young couple whose car is stranded in the snow knock on the door anyway.

"A funny and farcical story unfolds of desperate deeds and sheep in cradles," says writer and director Paul Burbridge. "To say nowt about what’s going on in Mak’s barn: a story so noisy, so wonderful and so massive that Ding and Delve may well need some help in telling it."

Next will be A Christmas Carol, that world-famous story born in the heart of Malton, where the counting house is sad to have inspired Charles Dickens. Not a lot of people know that. "So throw another log on the fire and listen to this enchanting story as you’ve never heard it before, back in its Yorkshire roots," says Burbridge. "Thrill to the exploits of animals on the farm as they give Frosty Fred a warm-hearted lesson about the spirit of Christmas."

Rob Gooch plays Ding to Paul Birch's Delve, complementing these primary storytelling characters with a number of supplementary roles, while Anna Gooch provides the set design.

"With plentiful puppetry, chuckle-loaded story-telling and huge helpings of good cheer, A Yorkshire Christmas is the real deal to brighten up your season," says Burbridge. "It's a right good treat for all the family."

Tickets for this evening cost £7, concessions £5, on 01904 768006 or on the door; Friargate Theatre, £7, concessions £5, 01904 613000; St Thomas’s Church, £3, children £1, on 07885 240901 or on the door, with hot dogs being served from 5pm.