Cast: Jupitus for Empire Hairspray role

Comedian and Never Mind the Buzzcocks team captain Phill Jupitus will reprise the role of Edna Turnblad in Hairspray when it visits Liverpool’s Empire Theatre in the summer.

He is currently playing the larger-than-life heroine at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London until the end of this month.

Joining him in the Liverpool production will be Les Dennis, who appeared at the same theatre in Peter Pan, as the loveable but ever so slightly crazy joke shop owner Wilbur Turnblad.

Danny Bayne, who won ITV’s Grease is the Word will play Corny Collins, winner of GMTV’s search for Troy in High School Musical 2, Liam Doyle will take on the role of Link Larkin and Laurie Scarth will play Tracy Turnblad.

Other cast will include Sandra Marvin as Motormouth Maybelle, Gillian Kirkpatrick as Velma Von Tussle and Wayne Robinson as Seaweed, Emma Dukes as Penny Pingleton, Clare Hulse as Amber Von Tussle and Seliza Sebastian as Little Inez.

Alternating the role of Edna Turnblad, during the first ever UK tour of the musical production, will be Michael Ball, who appears at Manchester’s Opera House in July as the cross-dressing lead, before it visits Liverpool (See News, 10 Aug 2009).

Hairspray appears at Manchester’s Opera House from Tuesday 13 July until Saturday 31 July.

The multi award-winning Broadway musical will then appear at Liverpool’s Empire Theatre on Tuesday 17 August and run until Saturday 4 September, following a visit to Plymouth.