Paul O'Grady on Corrie's Street of Dreams musical

There's a good interview today in The Mirror with Paul O'Grady who talks about his role in the new Coronation Street musical, Street of Dreams.

From The Mirror:

The musical will re-enact memorable storylines and iconic characters from the past five decades, in 90 minutes of high energy song and dance routines.The premiere is in March in Manchester and features Paul alongside famous faces, including William Roache (Ken Barlow), Julie Goodyear (Bet Lynch), Kevin Kennedy (Curly Watts), Brian Capron (Richard Hillman) and actors playing much-loved characters of the past such as the late, great Elsie Tanner and Ena Sharples.

Paul says: “The show is based on the album Coronation Street – Rogues, Angels, Heroes and Fools, which was written by Trisha Ward. I was sent a copy last year and I played it on the radio and I thought the songs were really clever, so when Trisha rang up and asked if I was interested I said yes. I fancied doing some theatre, it sounded like a good idea and I love Coronation Street.”

Paul is on stage for most of the show. “There’s no popping off for a cup of tea for me,” he laughs. “I’ve got a script that is as thick as Lord of the Rings. There’s a nice little bit with me and Ena Sharples in the shop – now there’s something I thought I’d never say! Me and Elsie… it’s just incredible. I’m going to be having tea with the Barlows, doing a bit of a tango with Vera. I’ve not handpicked the storylines myself but I know each and every one of them inside out. Our household were such avid Corrie viewers and at 7.30 pronto we’d all sit down together and watch it. And if the phone dared ring during that half hour my mother would be outraged. There are still big chunks of script engraved in my memory from 30 years back.”

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