Casting was last week announced for the world premiere of a new musical based on Carla Lane’s beloved BBC series The Liver Birds. Andrew Wright reports.

Taking on the iconic roles of Sandra and Beryl are Joanna Monro and Lesley Molony. Their combined West End credits include Blood Brothers, Buddy and Mamma Mia.

Their younger selves will be played by Call the Midwife’s Nicola Munns and Julie Atherton, a celebrated musical theatre star, with credits including Fame and Sister Act.

Beryl’s son Will will be played by Mark Rice-Oxley, another alumni of Blood Brothers, who also played George Harrison in NBC’s docudrama on John Lennon.

The exclusive ‘one night only’ concert presentation will feature new songs, with lyrics penned by singer/songwriter Barb Jungr and Level 42’s Mike Lindup, accompanying a script from BBC Radio Merseyside’s Linda McDermott.

The show is directed by Sarah Tipple, whose credits include the stage version of Dirty Dancing and Mike Leigh’s adaptation of The Pirates Of Penzance.

The show will pose the question: what happens when the Liver Birds come back together after forty years? after Sandra and Beryl meet at their old flat in present day Liverpool for the first time since the 1970s.

Carla Lane personally granted the rights for this musical adaptation of the story prior to her untimely death in 2016. Since then, the writing team have been busy creating the modern-day story, celebrating Carla’s characters and their home city in a new story.

The concert presentation will be the culmination of the show’s first workshop, and the creative team will be inviting audience members to share their feedback on the musical before it moves forward into its next stage of a fully staged world premiere production, which will also open in Liverpool.

Liver Birds Flying Home will be taking place at the Epstein Theatre on May 30.