PLAN B may need its own Plan B amid the Omicron surge, but Charles Hutchinson seeks to be positive, in Christmas spirit only, until otherwise informed.

Gigs of the week outside York: Shed Seven, Another Night, Another Town Greatest Hits Live Tour, Leeds O2 Academy, Monday and Tuesday

SHED Seven have restarted their Covid-stalled tour after calling off December 10 to 16's run of shows when a member of the touring party tested positive.

Earlier this week, the York band tweeted: "Excited to confirm that the tour will resume this Friday [December 17] in London let's finish what we started!! New dates for the shows that were postponed will be announced next week. Shed Seven ride again. See you down the front. X."

Tickets are still available for both Leeds gigs at ticketmaster.co.uk/shed-seven-leeds. Doors open at 7pm each night.

Children's show of the week: Riding Lights Theatre Company in Fizzy Finn Finds His Feet, Friargate Theatre, York, today to December 23

JON Boustead's "crackling new Christmas adventure" addresses children's mental health problems arising from lockdowns and separation from family and friends.

Suitable for ages five to 11, the 50-minute story of fear, bravery and finding your feet is presented by Jared More's Fizzy Finn and Meg Blowey's Tink the Cobbler with a magical blend of vivid storytelling, original music by Patrick Burbridge and creative puppetry. Box office: 01904 613000 or at ridinglights.org/fizzy-finn.

Christmas film tradition of the week: It's A Wonderful Life (U) at City Screen, York, today, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Christmas Eve

AN elderly angel is sent from Heaven to help desperately frustrated businessman George Bailey (James Stewart) as he contemplates suicide.

Taking George back through his life to point out what good he has done, the angel shows him what life would have been like if he had never existed.

Frank Capra's classic from 1946 is a Christmas Eve big-screen staple: City Screen has shows that day at 3pm and 6pm. Box office: 0871 902 5747 or at picturehouses.com.

Pianist of the week: Joe Alexander Shepherd, National Centre for Early Music, York, tonight, 7.30pm

YORK pianist and composer Joe Alexander Shepherd combines beautiful contemporary and classical music with a Christmas ambience tonight, complemented by special guest appearances by singer-songwriter Wounded Bear and singer Amelia Saleh on his return to the NCEM. Expect new compositions, by the way.

Concert proceeds will go to the Charlie Gard Foundation to support families affected by mitochondrial disease. Box office: 01904 658338 or at ncem.co.uk.

Finale of the week: Uthink Piccadilly Pop Up art studios and gallery, 23 Piccadilly, York, today and tomorrow

THE Uthink Piccadilly Pop Up art studios and gallery must vacate their temporary premises by the end of the month after being served notice by the re-developers.

Since August 2020, the studios opened to the public on Saturdays to showcase work by 15 artists, ranging from painting, drawing, abstract art and collage to photography, sculpture, installation and poetry.

Today, opening will be from 12 noon to 6pm; on Sunday, a festive market and extended art exhibition will run from 11am. Admission is free.

Cult gig of the week: Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band, The Crescent, York, Tuesday, 7.30pm

IN the wake of Adios Señor Pussycat in 2017, Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band are working on a new album, nearing completion.

Devotees of the 60-year-old Liverpudlian's gilded songwriting brio can expect to hear new songs as well as much-loved nuggets from his days in Shack and The Pale Fountains. Pet Snakes support at this standing-only gig. Box office: thecrescentyork.seetickets.com/event/michael-head

Pantomime in a car park? Oh yes it is, in Car Park Panto's Horrible Christmas, Elvington Airfield, near York, January 2, 11am, 2pm and 5pm

BIRMINGHAM Stage Company's Horrible Histories franchise teams up with Coalition Presents for Car Park Panto's 14-date tour of Horrible Christmas to racecourses, airfields, stadiums and a motor-racing circuit.

In writer-director Neal Foster's stage adaptation of Terry Deary's story, when Christmas comes under threat from a jolly man dressed in red, one young boy must save Christmas as a cast of eight sets off on a hair-raising adventure through the history of Christmas.

At this car-centred, Covid-secure experience, children and adults can jump up and down in their car seats and make as much noise as they like, tuning in to the live show on stage and screen. Box office: carparkparty.com.

Looking ahead to 2022: The Unthanks, Sorrows Away, York Barbican, May 31; doors 7pm

NORTHUMBRIAN folk sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank will perform forthcoming new album Sorrows Away and Unthanks favourites with an 11-piece ensemble in a co-promotion by York's Please Please You, The Crescent and Black Swan Folk Club and Brudenell Presents from Leeds.

As the album title suggests, it promises to be a blues-belter and a step into the light for sisters known more for melancholy and, well, sorrow. For tickets for The Unthanks' return to touring after a two-year hiatus, go to: yorkbarbican.co.uk.