LONG before Dame Berwick was a twinkle in Mother Kaler's eye, men have dressed up as women for entertainment, and vice versa.

But we had never chanced upon a cross-dressing dog. Until now.

As every pupil knows, Shakespeare would bend a gender at the drop of a quill. There's more to The Two Gentlemen Of Verona than two gentlemen, for instance. In this comedy of friendship and love, Julia disguises herself as a boy, Sebastian.

York Shakespeare Project director Ali Borthwick has decided to take these sex-swapping shenanigans further for this week's production at Friargate Theatre - and even the dog is joining in.

Lovely Lucetta is being turned into the male Lucett and Panthino makes the reverse journey into Panthina. The traditionally male role of servant Launce is also being played by a woman, Jenny Carr.

Launce's dog, the equally traditionally male Crab, is still called Crab - but the role goes to Lucy, a 19-month-old female Jack Russell puppy.

"So we've got a little girl dog playing a boy - more cross dressing in Shakespeare!" says Ali.

It is a tough role for the terrier: the director says Crab "pees, breaks wind and eats everything". Method acting perhaps?

Lucy/Crab belongs to Angela Johnson, who is appearing in the week-long run in the silent role of a dog warden to keep her Jack Russell on the straight and narrow...or maybe not.

IT'S December, so the Diary is allowing itself a mince pie and a first mention of Christmas.

'Tis the season to give, and Michael Walker, of Upper Poppleton, is selling a Christmas Quiz to raise funds for York Against Cancer.

Do you know what Harry Potter got for Christmas on his first semester at Hogwart's school? Or the name of the store in the film Miracle On 34th Street?

If so, you're well on the way to a Sunday lunch for two at the Lord Collingwood Inn - prize for the highest-scoring entry drawn.

Copies of the quiz sheet can be bought for a mere £1 from the Upper Poppleton Post Office, or Upper Poppleton Chemist on The Green.

KENNETH Barnes does not count himself among the I'm A Celebrity addicts we mentioned on Tuesday.

"After a couple of days they all appear to be stoned out of their minds," said Mr Barnes, from Catterton.

"On the other hand, is mine the only household to have noticed the trailing of clips from later screening of 'Live from Australia' broadcasts?"

Updated: 08:29 Thursday, December 01, 2005