Anyone who has seen the Rocky Horror Show knows that the audience are part of the experience and, to be honest, I wasn’t sure how a Monday night crowd would stack up.

So, when I took my seat at Bromley’s Churchill Theatre for opening night, I was pleased to see a man dressed in a red corset, a woman with a glittery top hat and a couple in matching lab coats sitting in front of me.

The musical, written by actor and former Crystal Maze host Richard O’Brien, first opened in the 1970s and, along with the 1975 film adaptation, has gained a cult following, leading to the live show being unlike anything else you’ll see in the theatre.

It’s become tradition that fans dress up as characters, bring props for certain musical numbers and shout out crude callbacks, making every performance a unique experience - and that’s coming from someone who’s seen it at least seven or eight times.

Something that has drawn a particularly eager crowd to this weeknight performance is the fact that Aussie singer and soap star Jason Donovan is reprising his role as Dr Frank-N-Furter after more than 25 years.

I never thought I’d see the former Neighbours heartthrob in fishnet stockings and a pair of stilettos but, to my surprise, he seemed quite at home in his raunchy get-up.

He played the lead character as thoroughly unhinged, leaning into the mad scientist role as opposed to the more seductive, sexy persona that I’ve seen other actors adopt.

It worked - he seemed completely at ease with the outlandish character, putting his own spin on the musical numbers and dishing out witty one-liners without a moment’s hesitation. He owned every line and lyric he delivered and, in turn, the audience felt completely comfortable in his hands.

But when it comes to interacting with the audience, no-one does it better than the Narrator.

Played in this production by stand-up comedian Nathan Caton, the Narrator dips in and out of the show to help weave the zany plot together and set the scene for what’s to come - and have x-rated jokes thrown at him from ballsy theatre-goers.

Dealing with hecklers must be a piece of cake for a comedian, or at least that’s how it felt whenever Nathan took to the stage. He handled every callback with just the right amount of playfulness and razor-sharp wit.

As a fan, I knew some of the jokes would be well-rehearsed as they come up every night (I can’t repeat many of them here, but just Google ‘Rocky Horror callbacks’ and you’ll find all the classics) but there were some off-the-cuff comments made about right-wing rioters and Prince Andrew, and Nathan’s comebacks had us all roaring with laughter.

Something else that made this production a little different was Job Greuter who has taken over the role of Riff-Raff from Kristian Lavercombe.

Kristian, who played the eccentric butler for more than 11 years and 2,600 performances, hung up his blonde wig in April and left some pretty big shoes for Job to fill - as if playing the character made famous by Richard O’Brien himself wasn’t a big enough task.

I’ll be honest, I did miss Kristian. He’s been in every production I’ve ever seen over the last decade and, for us fans, he became part of the furniture. However, Job made the role his own, giving it a little more of a comedic wink-wink and easing off on the creepiness just a tad, and it was nice to see a fresh face after all these years.

Some things don’t change - the songs are still rock ‘n’ roll brilliance, the story is just as surreal as ever, the costumes are wonderfully outrageous and everyone was on their feet for the Time Warp.

While you never know entirely what you’re going to get, and that’s the fun part, there’s still a familiar comfort about the Rocky Horror Show and the way it welcomes everyone into its wacky world that keeps me coming back.

The Rocky Horror Show is at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley until Saturday, August 24. You can book tickets online here.

You can also book tickets by calling 03433 100020.