Spoonful of magic with Mary Poppins

Get set for some Mary Poppins magic! That's the message from the stars of the hit musical ahead of their visit to the West Midlands next month.

The world's favourite nanny is flying into Birmingham Hippodrome as the all-singing and

all-dancing production takes centre stage in the theatre for almost three months as part of the musical's first ever nationwide tour.

The story of a nanny who transforms the Banks family by bringing a little magic into their lives was a classic 1964 film based on the books written by P L Travers in the 1930s.

And now Disney and producer Cameron Mackintosh take their West End show on the road, with Birmingham just one of five venues hosting the musical in the UK.

The Mary Poppins story is one that has delighted generations and for leading lady Caroline Sheen, it is a dream come true.

"I've always wanted to be involved in Mary Poppins," she says, speaking from Plymouth where the tour kicked off this week. "It's such a magical world and I really do love it.

"We have so much fun and nothing is as cool as being Mary Poppins," she laughs.

Caroline has appeared as the lead role in many West End musicals, including Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Sandy in Grease. But Mary Poppins is her dream role.

"Mary Poppins has always been part of my life. I've grown up with it. "And I'm a huge fan of Julie Andrews. I think she was fantastic as Mary Poppins.

"It's the most demanding thing I've ever done. There's a lot of singing, a lot of dancing and there's lots of flying – and the flying is the easy bit," she laughs. The actress does indeed spend a lot of time up in the air, so it is just as well she does not have a fear of heights.

"I'm not scared of heights, but I am scared of drops. It can be a bit scary when I go quite high, but I don't look down." she laughs.

"I'm really looking forward to be flying in Birmingham," she says.

Playing opposite Caroline is Daniel Crossley, who is chimney sweep Bert in the lavish production.

He is also no stranger to musicals, having appeared in Fame, Cats and Chicago. And like Caroline, he is also not afraid of heights – which comes in handy as he performs one of the most spectacular scenes in the production.

For those who will be seeing the show in Birmingham, we won't reveal the stunt, but as Daniel says: "It has to be the weirdest thing I've ever had to do. But my reward comes when I hear the audience gasp. It really takes their breath away," he says.

The 33-year-old says he loves the role of Bert. "It's brilliant. I get to sing, act and dance and I've actually lost half a stone since I started the tour because the role is so physical.

"We're doing eight shows a week, which is very demanding, but this is such a wonderful opportunity for me.

"The audience reaction has been brilliant," he says. And Daniel is full of praise for the child stars who take on the role of the Banks' children in the musical. "They say never work with children, but these kids are fantastic," he says. "They are really well behaved, respectful and fantastic in their roles.

"We all work really well together, we are a great team and the cast becomes your family as we spend so much time together," he adds.

It will Daniel's first visit to the Hippodrome. "I filmed an episode of Doctors in Birmingham, but I haven't performed in theatre there, so I'm very much looking forward to it."

* Mary Poppins is at Birmingham Hippodrome from July 10 to September 27. Tickets are priced £16.50 to £45 from 0844 338 5000 or online at www.birminghamhippodrome.com

By Maria Cusine